World's Balance
by Misty Mina
Summary: When an old forgotton evil is about to shake the world, it's up to a god to protect it. But what if said god needed the help of mortals like the mages of Fairy Tail? A story of monsters, mages, pixies and demons. Gray/Lucy, possible Gajeel/Levy.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Fairy Tail. Neither do I intend to steal it. If it was mine, I'd forbid Gray to wear clothes at all! XD I just own my OC and please don't use or steal them in your story. I'm their mommy, I love my children and won't hand them to strangers.

**Author's note:** So, this is my first real story. Before that it was only drabbles and a single One Shot in different fandoms. I know the manga and the anime is quite new and my story might not according to it. However this is a Fan Fiction. It doesn't have to go by the original story line. This means the story is AU (Alternate Universe)

~o~o~o~

**World's Balance**

**Chapter 1  
**by Misty Mina

Magnolia city was a lively town. Many people bustled through the streets, going through their daily routine. Routine also meant the daily noise in the Fairy Tail Guild. However the familiar noise had been missing for at least three days and the townspeople wondered if someone of the guild had died. Rest assured this was not the case. The guild was only peaceful because a certain Fire Mage had no one to argue with. Erza was on a solo S-class mission, she needed that after all those normal, almost easy requests. Lucy and Gray were on a simple mission given by Master Makarov himself. The reason why Natsu couldn't join was because it was the Master's orders.

"Hey old man, why couldn't I go? I'm soooo bored here!" Natsu complained while he was sitting at one of the tables with his head resting upon the surface.

"I told you already! It's because you don't know what the word 'stealth' means!" It seemed like Makarov was losing his patience after repeating himself for the third time. Natsu glared at the old Master. On any other day, nothing in the world would've stopped him to go against the Master's orders. It was just so hard to follow someone who has a head start of 6 hours and the damn geezer refused to tell him where they went! Worst of all was the thought that the old man favoured that icy bastard.

"So? Neither does Droopy Eyes and you still send him on that mission." Natsu replied, not even denying Makarov's accusation.

Normally, Happy would agree with his best friend, but he was strangely absent. Probably trying to persuade Mirajane into giving him another fish, which would make at least the eleventh one for the day. Makarov tried to stop the oncoming headache, by massaging his right temple, which was of course in vain. Arguing with Natsu was never a healthy thing to do, be it on a physical or mental level.

"Brat, I won't discuss this with you again! They'll be back today or tomorrow anyway,"

Natsu sighed. The master was right after all. He had been patient for the last three days. So he could manage a few more hours, right?

...

...

...

Of course not! This is Natsu we're talking about!

Jumping out of the chair, he leaped onto the table, trying to intimidate Makarov, by standing taller than him.

"It's not fair! We always go on missions together and now you just break up our team!" He seethed, almost spewing flames, literally.

Having enough of the Dragon Slayer's childish behaviour, the Master used his magic and slammed a giant fist down onto the pink haired mage. Caught off guard, Natsu and the table were crushed. The old man sighed and his arm shrunk back to normal. Sadly it was the only way for Natsu to understand that enough was enough. The other members wouldn't even flinch anymore when their Master did that. It became routine, like Kana drinking at least three barrels of ale or Elfman giving the 'manly' talk.

Meanwhile, outside of the Guild, Natsu's best friend Happy sat on a windowsill and devoured his, in fact, twelfth fish. Mirajane was really generous today.

Half finished with his meal, something caught the blue cat's eyes.

A purple glow.

A purple glow flew through the air and landed on the rail of the nearby balcony. It made a poofing sound and there stood something that looked like a small fairy. Fascinated by the little creature, Happy spread his wings and flew closer to get a better look. Since the fairy had its back turned to Happy, it was unaware of his presence. Strange enough for a character that the guild owed its name to, it had black and white butterfly wings and it wore black clothes. Nothing of those rumored green clothes made out of leaves or glittering, glowing material.

Instead it wore an elegant black top which looked like a corset with elbowlength, white lace decorated sleeves and a floor-length, lavish black skirt.

Years ago, Happy had learned that only girls wore skirts so he concluded that the fairy was female.

Her long black hair was bound to two, high pigtails that reached her shoulders and a small white ribbon on the back of her head. He couldn't see the face yet, but he assumed she looked kind of cute.

The little thing muttered something and stared at the guild crest. Perhaps he could help her finding what she was looking for.

"Hi, I'm Happy. Who are you?" The blue cat asked, oblivious to her flinching.

Slowly she turned around, eyes wide as saucers when she saw the big, blue cat in front of her. His first guess was correct, she was cute. She had a heart shaped face, dark eyes, a blue amulet around her neck and a moon-shaped white hair pin adorning her right side. It was silent for a few seconds and Happy already thought she wasn't able to speak his language. The tremble in her frame was all the warning he got before an ear-piercing shriek went through the air.

The fairy took off with high speed, trying to get away from the tomcat. Happy held his ears and went after the poor, frightened Fairy. She flew in an erratic zig-zag pattern and finally found an open window, which she used for her great escape.

Inside the building, she flew in panic circles. She then nosedived down and collided with Mirajane's forehead. The fairy yelped and bounced back right onto the bar's surface, close to Makarov. Mirajane went down with whirly eyes after the first round and the winner wasn't even four inches tall.

By then the whole guild was silently watching the show in front of them. Makarov flinched when his favourite Head Waitress passed out. Looking to make sure she was alright, he almost didn't notice the small creature next to him. The poor thing whined in pain and rubbed her own forehead. Makarov blinked once, ...then twice, ...yet the image stayed in place. There was a black and white fairy on his bar, not to mention that she K.O.-ed his waitress. He had seen many things in his long life, but he'd never seen a real Fairy.

The guild members tried to see what was going on and only those closest to the Master could actually take a glimpse at the mythical creature. The others wondered if Mirajane started drinking recently and just passed out from the alcohol.

"What do we have here?" The Master wondered out loud.

Natsu went right to Happy, to make sure he was fine. His priorities were perfectly clear. Friends over curiosity, right? ...Right?

"Looks like a giant insect!" Of course Natsu would say the first thing that came to mind. Knowing it better, his partner corrected him.

"No Natsu, look! That's a fairy!"

Having heard the smallest guild member the whole lot started muttering and tried to get closer at the same time.

The fairy regained her senses, quickly. She stood up straight and backed away while staring at the cat with frightened eyes. It was, as if she expected Happy to pounce any moment, like a normal cat would do.

Seeing her reaction, Makarov tried to calm her down.

"It's alright, no one wants to hurt you." She looked up at him and seemed to consider his words.

Natsu nudged his partner's side, telling him it would be a better idea to back off for now. The tense fairy let out a relieved sigh when Happy landed on Natsu's head, stretching the distance between them. Makarov looked down again, maybe now the little thing would be willing to say something.

"Can you talk?" The Master asked, not really sure about it.

In many legends fairies were unable to speak in any human language. They would be able to understand, but only reply with chirping, whining or whistling sounds.

"Y, y, yes" She stuttered softly. The old man had to strain his hearing to understand her.

"What is your name?"

She glanced to the side and noticed all those humans who got closer to get a better look at her. Getting a bit nervous, she started to twiddle with her hair. Makarov considered ordering them to back off, but that wouldn't do any good. He'd have to shout at them and that would certainly scare the little guest.

"They are just curious, ignore them. Nobody here wants to hurt you." He repeated.

Nodding the Fairy looked up with a bit more confidence than before.

"Yuu!" She stated proudly.

"Me? What?" Makarov didn't really understand what she was implying. Perhaps she could only repeat what humans say. Not really understanding the meaning of those words or just misinterpreting them.

"No! Yuu!" She shook her head.

"Yes. Me." He heard her right, so why was she shaking her head?

Miffed because of the dense human, she pointed to herself.

"YUU !" Maybe now he would understand her.

No such luck. The old mage still gave her a very perplexed look.

"Master, I think she wants to say that her name is 'Yuu'." Levy pointed out the obvious.

Clapping her tiny hands in approval, the fairy named 'Yuu' smiled happily.

Sweat dropping, the Master tried to maintain his last shred of dignity.

"Oh, ...of course. He, he."

Wendy had a hard time worming her way through the crowd. Carla was complaining about rude adults, yet they didn't make room for them. They were too ensnared by the fairy to acknowledge her. But when they finally reached the bar, Wendy let out a gasp.

"She is sooo cute and tiny."

Mirajane was up again, though the huge bump on her forehead was hard to ignore.

"I wonder if she's lost? Maybe she saw the statues and crest of our Guild."

Happy nodded.

"Yeah I thought that too, but I couldn't ask her. She just freaked out."

Since all guild members seemed to keep their distance and the tomcat hadn't pounced on her yet, Yuu started to relax a bit.

"Yuu afraid of cats! Always try to eat Yuu..." It seemed the fairy could only talk of herself in third person. Well, it wasn't like they weren't used to that kind of talking, having Juvia in their guild and all.

It was funny how those sentences sounded. They sounded as if she was addressing the one who listened to her. 'Yuu' and 'You' sounded alike. So it was no wonder that Makarov was mistaken.

Natsu tried to look up at his best friend, almost making him fall down.

"What? Happy? He'd never do that, right?"

"Never!"

Mirajane walked closer to Yuu looking her up and down.

"Are you searching for something, Yuu?" She asked, using her gentle, motherly tone.

She looked up at the white haired waitress and nodded eagerly, liking the way she talked to her.

"Yeah. Fairy Tail!"

Natsu grinned at that. In his logic, Yuu's answer was to be expected.

"Well, You've found it! Of course! A fairy would only look for something familiar that's why she came here." Natsu stood there with his arms crossed, fully satisfied with his conclusion.

"Aye."

Yuu whirled around with an annoyed look on her face and blew a raspberry at the Dragon Slayer.

"Yuu no fairy!" She said while angrily waving her fists at him. Obviously, he did just insult her.

"Um, ...a pixie?" Now the guessing game was on and everyone in the guild seemed to have another word for the mythical being in front of them.

"No!"

"A fay?"

"Isn't that the same as a fairy?"

"NO!" Yuu seemed to have enough of the nonsense since her face started to turn red from anger.

"Maybe she is an angel? Who said they're required to have feathered wings?"

The Not-Fairy gave them a dumbfounded look, as if she was thinking if they were serious.

"Nooooooo!" Were those humans for real or just playing with her?

"Of course not! Angels are not manly!" Elfman interjected. Now the guild knew what was missing the whole time. Elfman's 'manly' talk. For him, it didn't even matter that nothing about Yuu, angels, fairies, or pixies were manly. He was just glad he said it.

Yuu cocked her head to the side, a bit confused by Elfman's comment. Then she looked down on herself and wondered if male humans thought it manly to wear skirts. Totally ignoring the brute, the others continued their game.

"What if she's a Guardian Spirit?"

"Hey, maybe she is a Stellar Spirit and is looking for Lucy."

"That would be plausible."

Now things were getting ridiculous. The humans started to jump to conclusions. Yuu had to stop them before they expected her to do some kind of miracle.

"No! No! No! NOOOOOOO!" Yuu yelled as loud as she could, while waving her arms.

The guild fell silent; everyone was surprised that such a tiny thing could reach that volume. Yuu was panting, not really used to shouting at all. When no one dared to raise their voice, she nodded and turned her attention back to the Master.

"Yuu messenger!"

The whole guild, except Makarov, face faulted. Messenger was not the term for a mythical creature, it was a job.

"Whose messenger are you?" Makarov asked with great caution. She may be cute and tiny, but that didn't mean that her employer shared those traits.

"Abaddon!"

The Master's eyes widened and his face drained of color. The guild couldn't make sense of the name, not even the older members. They started muttering, trying to figure out who that was.

"That's a strange name."

"Never heard of such a person."

"Maybe there is a new guild and their Master wants to introduce himself?"

Most humans had never heard that name, but every master of a guild knew whom she was talking about. Makarov hoped that his guild wouldn't freak out.

"Abaddon? ...The Lord of the Underworld?" He asked to make sure.

There was a moment of silence and everyone looked like they just heard that the world ended tomorrow.

Yuu didn't really understand why the humans seemed so shocked. Nevertheless, she answered the Master truthfully.

"Yep. Yuu Underworld Messenger! Has important message for Guild!"

~o~o~o~

tbc.

Story was under revision and only minor things have changed


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Fairy Tail. Neither do I intend to steal it. If it was mine, I'd forbid Gray to wear clothes at all! XD I just own my OC and please don't use or steal them in your story. I'm their mommy, I love my children and won't hand them to strangers.

**Author's note:** Nothing new here, I'll just changed a bit of the chapter.

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 2  
**by Misty Mina

Let's turn back time for a few hours.

Two Fairy Tail mages were lost in a forest between Magnolia and Hargeon. Gray and Lucy had finished the Master's assignment with success and were on their way back. But somehow, they got themselves lost due to Gray's (not so great) sense of direction.

" 'I told you we should have taken a ship and sailed back home. That would have been the fastest and safest way', she says" Horologium repeated everything Lucy said while carrying his summoner around.

Gray had taken his shirt off already and as long as it was only the shirt, Lucy wouldn't say anything.

"Says the one who is not even walking by herself." The ice mage wasn't really mad at Lucy. Just frustrated since there was some truth in her words.

" 'Well, I'm sorry that I'm tired. But we were walking for hours without a break', she says."

He sighed heavily, knowing he'd been walking for hours as well, but he wasn't complaining.

"Just a bit more, I'm sure this is the right way." Gray assured her.

" 'You said that the last three times', she says."

A beeping sound came from nowhere and Horologium poofed away. The blonde yelped when she landed on her butt. Gray chuckled a bit at her antics. Lucy was fun to be around, unlike Natsu and Erza. Oh he liked them since they were his friends and comrades. Despite that, it was always nerve wrecking to be around them. He always fought with Natsu, and it was just too hard to watch his mouth constantly around Erza. She would hurt him! Bad. It didn't matter if it was something he said, or just a nudge. She didn't know her own strength.

Lucy was different. Sure she whined a lot and wasn't as strong as the other two, but she was kind, accepting, easy to talk to and the single most important thing ...it didn't hurt so much when she would hit him.

The Stellar Mage stood up and brushed the dust off her clothes.

"I think you should take a break Gray. We have all the time in the world to go home."

Gray gave her a sideways glance. 'You mean YOU want to take a break...' He thought, not really wanting to say it out loud.

Suddenly there was a muffled voice.

"What ..." Lucy began, but was silent when he lifted his hand.

"Over here boss." Someone said.

The steps he'd heard were moving away. The strangers went deeper into the forest. Lucy didn't know she'd held her breath until she let it out in a sigh.

"Phew. I thought we were in trouble."

Something was off. Gray knew he'd heard that voice before, though he couldn't remember when or where.

"Let's follow them!"

Lucy gave him the 'Are-you-mad,-suicidal-or-Natsu?' look.

"You're kidding, right? Why should we follow them? We are done here. Mission accomplished. Done, finished, completed, finito, ende,. you hear me?" The Stellar Mage felt like she was talking to a stubborn child. And until now she'd thought she was the only one with a reputation for blonde moments.

For a second, Gray wondered how many languages Lucy knew, but he pushed that question aside for later.

"They aren't up to any good. We'd taint the guild's name if we just let them go."

The blonde frowned. Was that the usual excuse for 'let's get ourselves in trouble, danger and possibly killed'?

She didn't know if she would be any help. Lucy had called a spirit and walked through the forest for hours. Tired wasn't the right word to describe was more like dead.

The ice alchemist would be a fool not to notice his comrade's condition. Endangering a friend is bad. ...Leaving them behind on their own is even worse.

"We'll just follow them for now. If they attack us, I'll handle it."

Lucy wanted to protest, but when she opened her mouth, he gave her a look that dared her to say anything. She reluctantly nodded and followed him as he led the way deeper into the forest. It was easier to sneak after their targets since Natsu wasn't there. Sure, Natsu was great, strong and as good a friend as you could want. But to be honest, silence, sneaking and stealth were words he didn't even know and couldn't care less about.

Gray carefully peeked from behind a tree and saw four men who followed another at a normal pace. He motioned for Lucy to stay where she was before going after the group. Watching his step, he snuck to the next tree. When he was certain it was safe enough, he beckoned his partner to come over. It wasn't the quickest method, but as long as they could find out what was going on, it didn't really matter.

The ice alchemist mentally stomped down the urge to strip. It was a bad habit and got even worse when he was nervous and tense. Lucy caught a glimpse of the men and knew right away who they were.

"Aren't those the mercenaries that the baron hired?" She whispered, trying hard not to draw any attention to herself.

Now that she mentioned it, Gray remembered them. They were hired by the baron to protect not only him, but also his home. The Master gave them the mission to infiltrate the house and find out what the baron was doing for a living. On the outside, he was the honest and kind landlord, who was aiming to be the new mayor of the town Hargeon. And beneath the almost comical act, he was a slave trader who abused, bought and sold his employees. The two collected enough evidence and, as the Master had instructed, handed it over to the current mayor. Makarov knew the mayor of Hargeon personally. The man was worried about his people, which was why he had requested the help of Fairy Tail.

In the end, the baron's career ended before it began. He'd been imprisoned and was awaiting his trial. That, of course, left the mercenaries without an employer. Since they were only hired for protection, there was no reason and no evidence to put them in jail for the moment, but that could change. Apparently, things got too hot for them now and they were traveling to the next town.

Gray nodded once before continuing to follow them. It wouldn't surprise him if they were heading for Magnolia. He bet they knew exactly who brought their source of capital down.

The group reached a clearing where he couldn't follow them anymore without being seen. Luck was on his side however when they stopped in the middle of the clearing. They stood in a circle around something. Gray couldn't make out what it was that caught their attention until he looked between the legs. There was a body on the ground, probably a corpse. Were they so immoral or desperate to steal a dead person's possessions?

"Pretty thing, huh boss?" The one who lead them there asked.

A plump man with a bald, tattooed head and who didn't look like he'd had a bath in weeks, looked down on the person. The only thing that would identify this man as a leader would be the huge and heavy looking morning star attached on his side.

"Are you sure she's not dead?" He asked.

"Alive and healthy, sleeping like a baby...or babe. He he. " Gray could practically see the leer on the man's face.

"A bit thin for my taste, but she'll do!" Another said.

Lucy had caught up and also had heard the last sentence. Gasping softly she looked at Gray with horror in her soft brown eyes.

It was not like he would let them rape the poor girl. He turned to Lucy.

"Stay here, this could get ugly." He ordered, keeping his voice low.

"No, we're a team!" Lucy protested.

He really didn't want to put Lucy in danger if it wasn't necessary. Five mercenaries weren't so hard to take on for a good mage and despite what Natsu said, he knew he was damn good. On the other hand, he could also understand her. It wasn't the pride of a fighter which Lucy tried to maintain. More like the usefulness of a comrade. She wanted to be of use, not to be a burden. Gray respected that. How could anyone expect her to get better if nobody gave her the chance to improve?

Thinking quickly of another strategy was not easy. They were already deciding their turns. The best strategy would be to lead them away.

"Ok, listen! I'll distract them and get those idiots to follow me. You go and check up on the girl when the coast is clear. If by chance one stays behind, you can handle him." It wasn't the brightest idea, but their opponents were stupid enough for it to work.

"Ok!"

Without looking back Gray took off. Not even using his magic, he punched the frist man in sight. No use in showing them his full potential when trying to draw them away. He stood a few feet away, staring at them and not at the place where Lucy was hiding.

"Taking advantage of an unconscious girl is something cowards would do. But looking at scumbags like you... I shouldn't be surprised." He taunted.

The bald man took the bait right away.

"KILL HIM! I WANT HIS HEAD ON A STAKE!" His face almost turned purple from all the yelling.

Gray ran away with four of them running after him. Their boss stayed behind, neither really in the mood nor the condition to run. That was fine with Lucy. She left her hiding place just when the man turned back to his prey.

"Oh no, you won't!" Lucy yelled, holding a golden key. She was worried about that girl now. Perhaps she was hurt, sick or unconscious. The noise they were making should be enough to raise the dead, yet she hadn't even twitched.

The leader turned around and spotted the Stellar Mage.

"Another sweet doll? Today is my lucky day!" He leered, too stupid and perverted to know what Lucy was up to. She held the key out in front of her, summoning her spirit.

"Open! A door to the bull, Taurus!"

Not wasting a second the Stellar Spirit appeared, dutifully heeding his summoner's call.

"Moooooohhhh, Lucy-san has the hottest body!" Was his battle cry.

Lucy slapped her forehead in aggravation. She forgot that Taurus was also a pervert. Some day she will have to forbid him to make such entrances.

"Great, now those two pervs can shake hands..." She muttered.

A brilliant idea struck her. Maybe she could actually use Taurus weakness in her favor.

"Taurus! That man wants to molest me!"

As Lucy expected, that got his attention. As much as Taurus was a pervert, he was also possessive. One can look, but heaven help them if they touch!

"Whaaat?" Eyes blazing, he raised his axe while the leader was frightened and fumbled for his morning star.

The spirit ran towards the man, swinging his axe with uncontrolled fury.

"I wanted to do that first!" Taurus admitted with an angry snarl, not even ashamed of saying it.

Lucy was afraid that she'd made a mistake by telling the spirit this. The bull was full of rage and she feared for the girl's safety. However, it seemed that, even when he was furious, Taurus was unconsciously aware of his surroundings. He swung his axe to the right, aiming for the midsection of his target. The man jumped to the side and ran away from the sleeping girl with Taurus hot on his heels. Lucy ran over to make sure she was alright. Kneeling down, she saw her even breathing. So she wasn't sick with a fever or had a heat stroke, she was just a really heavy sleeper. She lay on her right side with bent legs, her right arm under her head as a pillow and the other resting on her waist.

That girl looked kind of strange. She was dressed in black clothes, like she'd been on a funeral. The style of her clothes wasn't so hip either. She wore black leather boots, (at least Lucy guessed it were boots her pants covered them right down to the ankle) tight, black pants and a black and white tunic like top with long wide sleeves. Her hair was a raven black and bound into a low ponytail that reached a bit past her shoulder. Her bangs, long and messy, lay over one eye. The girl's features were not really what one would call cute, but still beautiful in their own way. They reminded her a bit of Erza. Strong, a bit masculine and still feminine.

The strangest part however was her chest. A-cup would be a compliment.

She was totally flat!

Lucy shook her head. 'This is not the time to measure breasts!'

She wanted to shake the dark-haired beauty, but before she could actually touch her arm, a great wave of fatigue hit her. Wobbling to the side she caught herself on her forearms. The day caught up with her and the strain she'd been put through had drained her energy to the point where she couldn't hold Taurus in this realm anymore.

'I hope he took care of that guy'. She thought, getting up into a sitting position again.

Gray hadn't returned yet and Lucy hoped he didn't get hurt. If Taurus couldn't knock that guy out, the ice mage would be her only hope. The blonde turned back to the girl, who was still asleep and tried to wake her up. She lifted her hand, which trembled with exhaustion and touched the girl's shoulder. Suddenly rustling could be heard from nearby bushes. Lucy turned her head around.

"Gray? Is that you?" She asked meekly. Hoping, almost praying, that she was right.

To her absolute horror it was the mercenary.

"That was a nice trick, Missy, but foreplay is over!" He growled

Swinging his morning star, he approached the two girls slowly. Lucy was too weak to run, let alone fight, and Gray was probably far away. Her only option was to wake the girl and hope she could use magic or help in any kind of way. If not, well the stellar mage would at least die an honorable death. She was not keen to meet her end so soon, yet dying for saving someone sounded better than dying for nothing.

"Wake up, please, wake up! Please, please, please!" She shook her hard with despair clearly written on her face, but the girl slept very deeply indeed or was really unconscious.

When he stood in front of her, he raised his arm to strike out. Even though it would be in vain, Lucy raised her arms to shield her head. Before the man could swing down his weapon, a voice rang through the woods.

"LUCY!"

Gray had no time to lose. with quick motions he used his ice magic to help his comrade.

"Ice Make Rampart !"

A wall of ice raced over the green grass, trying to separate the mercenary and Lucy. It was the only technique he could think of, any other would've hurt Lucy as well. The man swung his weapon and it was about to hit the stellar mage.

No use.

Gray saw his magic wouldn't reach them in time, he was just too far away.

Lucy was sure she was going to die. Gray tried his best, she knew that. All of a sudden she was grabbed by her waist and thrown to the side, out of the path of the deadly weapon. She closed her eyes and held her breath. For a short moment, she felt how her body rolled around in the grass, shielded by another.

When nothing happened for a few seconds, she dared to open her eyes, just to see black. When Lucy realized she was staring at clothes, she looked up right into the indigo, almost black, eyes of the girl they were trying to save. It seemed the girl had grabbed Lucy and hauled her out of the way.

Gray walked over to them, not really believing what just happened. He glanced at the bald man who was caught in the ice rampart. Gray's magic had hit the man directly and killed him. However, that was never his intention. In the last two seconds before the morning star could hit Lucy, his wall increased in speed. Not only that, it changed its course slightly, so it would kill, instead of separating the enemy from the girls. Not like he would mourn his death, yet killing would always be his last option. Thinking back, it wouldn't be the first time that Gray's emotions would influence his magic. It made him wonder. He was close to losing a comrade before, but it was never like this.

When he reached the girls, he saw that Lucy was still in the other girl's arms with her head resting on the others shoulder and one hand at her chest. He felt a twinge when he saw them like this, but thought nothing of it. The last thing he wanted to admit was that he may be disgusted by two girls being together like that.

"Are you two alright?" He asked.

Lucy regained her senses and tried to answer Gray when her gaze fell on her left hand that still rested on the other girl's chest. There was something wrong here. When she knew what it was, the stellar mage straightened her back and pushed herself out of the others embrace with the same hand that still rested on the other's chest.

"You aren't a girl!" Lucy blurted it out before she could think about it.

The other person was surprised at first when Lucy had pushed her, no ...HIM away. Letting Lucy's words sink in the look turned into a miffed frown before 'he' answered in a clearly male voice.

"I never claimed to be one. What happened anyway?" 'He' said, looking to the side where the frozen mercenary stood.

That got Gray's attention and the twinge only got worse. They were fooled by a guy with pretty looks? He wanted to yank Lucy away and walk the other direction. They had risked their lives for nothing? Even those idiotic mercenaries would have noticed the difference sooner or later. The only reason why he didn't do it was that the 'guy' was right. They had all jumped to conclusions. Mercenaries and mages alike. The ice alchemist counted to ten and when he was sure he was calm enough to think clearly he turned to the other man.

"It seemed like your features fooled a group of mercenaries. They were about to rape a 'pretty girl like you'. " The spite in Gray's voice was hard to miss. Either the other didn't hear it or politely ignored it. The stranger stood up with a sigh.

"I see. Well, it would not be the first time that others mistake me for a girl. But it is the first time they went so far as to almost rape me. I guess I let my guard down." He replied with a slight smirk.

The ice mage couldn't imagine what could be so funny about that. If he'd be in the guys place, he would certainly freak out and not smirk. Lucy stood up, her legs trembled a bit with exhaustion. She was a bit mad that they went through so much danger to save a girl, who was in fact a guy, but maybe they still did a good thing.

"You should be more careful, you'll never know who you come across. I'm Lucy and this is Gray." She introduced them.

"Where are my manners? My apologies. The name ...is Yuga." He said while bowing slightly to the blonde.

Gray started to seethe. The nerve of that slick bastard. He couldn't really explain his dislike, it was just there.

"What were you doing out here anyway?" Gray asked with suspicion.

Yuga straightened his back and raised a delicate eyebrow.

"I am on a journey. I got lost and was too tired to go on, so I took a nap. The next thing I know is the feeling of someone shaking me and when I look, there is a bald man with a morning star trying to kill Miss Lucy." Yuga replied truthfully.

"Aww, no need to call me 'Miss'. Just call me Lucy." The stellar mage blushed, a bit embarrassed, and held her cheek with her right hand. It wasn't like men as good looking as Yuga were ever so polite to her…especially in her guild. Most of the time they wouldn't look her way, probably thinking they were too good for her. Yuga's eyes widened in surprise when he noticed Lucy's Fairy Tail symbol on her hand.

"I assume you are mages of Fairy Tail?"

Gray was still suspicious, but Lucy answered him since she saw no harm in the question. Besides that, he still saved her, or so she thinks.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" She replied, proud to be a member of a guild that everyone recognized.

"You do not happen to be on your way back to Magnolia, do you? I wanted to travel there, but like I said, I got lost. Maybe you could tell me which way to go." Yuga scratched the side of his head, looking embarrassed.

Lucy clapped her hands together, totally oblivious to Gray's frown.

"Why don't you come with us? We're going the same way and you won't get lost again."

Gray's eyes widened, there was no way he would allow that.

"Lucy, could I speak to you for a second, in private?" He dragged her a few steps away from this stranger.

The stellar mage didn't understand her comrade. What in the world got him so disgruntled that he would even stray from his aloof nature? Yuga was most definitely not Natsu.

"Ow! Gray, let go. What's gotten into you?"

"That's what I wanted to ask you! He's a stranger! Who knows? Maybe he is a member of a Dark Guild and you want to lead him to our hometown? To our guild?"

The ice alchemist tried to keep his voice down, but he wasn't sure if he could keep it that way. Lucy knew Gray had a point and so did she.

"If he was, he wouldn't even bother to save me. Yuga would have attacked us, maybe not right away, but at latest when he saw my crest. Besides that, it makes no sense. There is nothing in Magnolia! Only our guild and they're all capable mages. We can take him on if he plans anything!"

Gray struggled to find a convincing argument, but couldn't think of one. Game, set and match for Lucy Heartfilia.

The blonde turned around and went back to Yuga. The dark-haired mage suppressed the urge to drag her back. This was just childish. He wanted to keep her away from that stranger at all cost. Said person sat on a stump and had waited for them to reconcile their differences. He looked up when Lucy returned.

"Your offer to join you is really generous, but I really do not want to impose." Yuga started.

The stellar mage asked herself if Yuga always spoke in such an eloquent way. She waved his concern off.

"Nonsense! It's fine, really. You saved me, the least I can do is to help you out."

"Thank you. But may I ask something?"

"Shoot!"

It seemed like Yuga didn't know what the term meant, since he looked a bit puzzled.

"I mean, yes." She corrected.

"Why is your comrade in his underwear?" He asked, pointing in Gray's direction.

Turning around, Lucy yelled: "GRAY! PUT YOUR CLOTHES ON, NOW!"

Yuga chuckled and muttered under his breath.

"Some journey, this will be."

Hearing Yuga say something, Lucy turned back to face him while said comrade still struggled to get his clothes back on.

"What was that?" She asked.

Yuga stood up and looked at Lucy with his dark eyes. She noticed his slim built and that he was slightly taller than Gray by two or three inches.

"Nothing. Can you walk? You look exhausted, perhaps it is better to take a break first." He suggested.

Now that he mentioned it, she still felt tired but hadn't given it much thought.

"Thank you, I'm fine, really." Lucy tried to be strong.

"That's not what you said earlier" Gray returned fully dressed and had also put his shirt back on.

"Oh, shut up, I'm all better now!" Lucy tried hard. She wanted to be as strong as any other Fairy Tail mage. It was just so difficult.

Yuga seemed to have a solution for the problem.

"If you want I could carry you, that way, you do not have to walk." Yuga offered, perhaps not really thinking what the gesture might imply.

Lucy blushed heavily. Being carried by a guy was one thing. Natsu did it all the time and she didn't think anything of it. Being carried around by a man like Yuga was a different matter. Not that she disliked him or anything. Quite the opposite, he was too beautiful for his own good. For God's sake, people mistake him for a woman!

Gray watched that display with an annoyed look. Not one to use words, he let his actions speak. The ice mage lifted Lucy up and carried her bridalstyle in the direction he thought was right. The blonde struggled, yelled and even hit Gray a few times. Yuga followed them with an amused smirk.

"Gray, for the last time! Put. Me. Down! I can walk! Or at least don't carry me like this, it's so embarrassing." Since he wouldn't listen to orders, she tried to negotiate.

"Then how?" He asked in a gruff voice.

"Piggyback, ok?

"...Fine." He was not really pleased, but at least he got his way. There was no way he'd let that pervert carry Lucy. No way! Gray let her down and she didn't waste a minute to let her fist do the talking when she hit him over the head.

"Hey, what was that for?" He asked, confused by Lucy's behavior. It didn't really hurt. He was used to the almost daily brawl in their guild, so a single punch from her was nothing.

"For just scooping me up like that and for walking in the wrong direction again! Now we'll do this my way! We go north until we reach the sea. From there we'll walk west and arrive in Magnolia with one day delay. No more of your short cuts, you hear me?" She'd let him lead the way once and regretted it the moment they got lost. She would have no more of that!

Following her wish, he carried her piggyback to the direction she pointed to with their new comrade trailing besides them.

It didn't take long for Lucy to fall asleep on Gray's back with her head resting on his shoulder. The ice mage felt unusually hot and if it wasn't for the fact that he was carrying his partner around, he would have dropped his shirt already. He didn't feel like talking to their new addition and it seemed like Yuga didn't mind. The guy was a strange fellow anyway. Who was so careless to take a nap in the middle of a forest alone and with all kinds of monsters around, animal and human alike? Taking a closer look, he didn't even have a visible weapon or a backpack. Perhaps he'd lost that already.

~o~o~o~

They reached the sea about two hours later.

Gray was strong, but carrying someone for so long was exhausting.

"Hey Lucy. C'mon wake up. We reached the sea, what now?" Ok, more like he wasn't sure which direction to take.

Lucy's eyes opened slowly. She didn't want to wake up yet. The stellar mage was still tired and too comfortable to walk again. Oh well, all things had to come to an end. Nudging her friend to let her down, Lucy wobbled a bit before she stood straight. Gray felt disappointment welling up. He wouldn't have minded carrying her around all day.

The sea sparkled like a thousand stars on a moonless night. Lucy took a deep breath and smelled the salt in the air. It was purifying and calming at the same time. Looking around she spotted the forest behind them, like she expected. Then she pointed to the left.

"That way! As long as the sea is in sight we can't get lost." She was amazed how easy navigation could be.

After a few steps, Lucy noticed that Yuga stayed behind. His eyes were on the sea, mirroring memories from long ago instead of the sparkle of the ocean. Lucy couldn't help but interpret the sight as bittersweet.

"Yuga? Everything alright?" Nothing was alright, she knew that. But she also knew it wasn't her place to try and fix something she didn't understand.

He stayed there for a second longer before he turned to Lucy.

"It is nothing. I thought of ...better times." He admitted.

Understandable. The sea could sway people to lose track of time and remember things they had forgotten in their daily life. The stellar mage was no exception. Maybe Yuga was a wandering poet or an artist.

They walked along the shore for awhile before something caught their eyes.

"Hey ...is that a ship?" Lucy asked.

As much as Gray wanted to deny that, it certainly had the shape of a ship.

"Why should it anchor in the middle of nowhere?"

Yuga stayed silent, either he didn't want to state the obvious or he wasn't sure if the thing was a ship. They walked a bit closer until the shape became clear. It really was a huge ship, a three-master to be precise. Suddenly Lucy turned around with a bright and happy face.

"I've got a great idea! If we ask, maybe the crew will take us to Magnolia. That way, we'd be home in one or two hours."

"And if it's a pirate ship? Or broken?" Gray didn't like to burst her bubble, but reality was a good teacher.

"I am not very knowledgeable concerning ships and their flags, but I doubt that pirates use a red and white flag, even if it is in bad shape." Yuga pointed out.

Looking at the top of the main mast, the Fairy Tail mages spotted a red and white dot which represented the ship flag. They walked closer, still wary of the crew or traps.

Only silence greeted them when they were close enough. Since it was so big it should only anchor in deep water. You would need a boat or swim to the ship to go on board. Strange enough it wasn't too far away from the shore. Perhaps Gray was right and the ship couldn't sail anymore. It really worried the blonde now, she didn't want to spend the night in the woods with all the wild animals and the creepy bugs.

"What now? I can't hear anyone, much less see them."

That wasn't good. Gray wanted to avoid a fight if possible. There was only one way to find out what was going on. Gray was about to use his ice magic to create a bridge when a voice could be heard out of nowhere.

"Ahoy strangers. Are you looking for something?" A person was leaning against the rail talking to them. He looked like a normal sailor, not a pirate. Was the guy there the whole time? Lucy had been startled at first, but she answered the sailor quickly.

"Ahoy, we were wondering if you're heading to Magnolia and maybe give us a ride." She yelled back. If they wanted money they could pay, no problem. The reward for the mission was big enough.

"Well it isn't exactly our course, but we're heading in the direction. If you want I'll go ask the Capt'n."

"That would be great, thank you."

Gray took a glance at Yuga, who examined the ship with a confused look. Like he didn't understand the situation or what the sailor just said. Or maybe he'd never seen such a huge ship. For all he knew, Yuga could have grown up on the moon. He didn't have the time to ask the other man when the sailor returned and a long ramp went down to them. A really long ramp! Lucy had never seen something like that. Normally they would use a boat to bring the passengers to an anchoring ship.

"The capt'n welcomes you. He said a few more passengers for an hour wouldn't be trouble."

Lucy practically ran up the ramp and Gray followed her in a much slower pace. When one set of footsteps was missing, he turned around to take a look. Yuga stood frozen in place with a scrutinizing expression on his face. His eyes darted from bow to stern and back. The ice alchemist wondered if the other was afraid or if he'd never been on a ship before.

"Something the matter?" Gray asked.

Yuga looked up with the same expression.

"You really want to take a ride on that floating coffin?"

The ice mage didn't know what he was talking about. The ship looked seaworthy and the captain let them on board. This confirmed his suspicion of Yuga being afraid of ships and water.

"You can also try and walk to Magnolia." That sounded spiteful even in his ears.

The other didn't seem to be listening when he cautiously took the first step onto the makeshift bridge. Gray walked the remaining distance and jumped on board followed by Yuga.

The sailor they'd talked to was not in sight, neither were any of the passengers or the captain. Something strange was going on, but the Fairy Tail mages didn't really think too much of it. Yuga stretched his limbs like he was tired all of a sudden.

"Since we are here, I guess, I will take a look at the cabins. I need a nap."

Lucy's eyes widened.

"Again? Weren't you sleeping when we first met?"

The handsome man shrugged, not really surprised with her reaction.

"There is nothing to do here. Besides that, I take a nap whenever I feel like it. Those who are asleep ...do not sin." Yuga added a wink for good measure.

Now Gray knew why he preferred for that bastard to stay behind. He was just so annoying! Winking like that and thinking it would work on Lucy? Not a chance in hell!

Unfortunately for him it was working on her. The blondes face turned beet red and she couldn't utter a word. The dark haired beauty took it as his cue to leave the stage to the two mages. When he was gone, Gray finally exploded.

"Is it just me, or are you really into him? He winks at you and you almost faint." His voice had a tone that spoke of accusation and jealousy. Lucy may have been oblivious to his tone, but it certainly shook her out of her dreamy state.

"I don't know why you're so mad. It's not like he asked me out or anything." She defended herself. Gray was a good comrade, but sometimes he was just so overprotective.

With that she walked away to look for the captain to thank him for his generosity. Left with only himself as company, Gray leaned back against the rail with a heavy sigh. He didn't understand himself lately. It was as if he was a different person. One he didn't like. A person who was angry and jealous for reasons he couldn't grasp and who took it out on Lucy instead of the culprits. A sudden movement brought him out of his brooding.

The ship started to move. On it's own! A look towards the still tied sails and the moving helm told him that much. He started to run, taking the same direction Lucy had. However, the run was cut short because Lucy met him halfway with a panic-stricken look on her face.

"Lucy, you ok?" He asked with concern clearly to be heard in his voice.

"There is nobody here, Gray. The captain's cabin is empty and there is no one below deck."

They were fooled and now they were stuck. There was no way they could swim back and there were no lifeboats in sight.

"Have you checked the passenger cabins? Maybe they're held hostage?" Gray tried to reason.

"They're the other way, but Yuga would have said something. Don't you think?"

"No, maybe they've caught him as well. Or he is one of them! Oh I bet he was just leading us into this trap and you blindly trusted him." There he goes again.

Lucy threw her arms in the air in exasperation.

"Stop it Gray, this is not the time to fight. We have to get to the passenger cabins, now!" She took Gray's wrist and pulled him towards the passenger area. Her hand was almost at the door when the bow started to sink, making them fall towards the front of the ship. Something pulled the ship down. Thinking only to protect his comrade, Gray pulled her towards him to shield her. But just as sudden, the pulling stopped and the ship bounced back. The ice mage lay on his back with Lucy on top of him. He got up and looked for injuries. Lucy had just a few bruises, nothing serious. The blonde looked up at him with a concerned look.

"Gray, you're bleeding." She stated and pointed towards his forehead.

There was a small cut beside his scar and like every head wound, it looked worse than it really was. Lucy still felt bad. She couldn't even protect herself, not to mention protecting others. The only thing she could do was to try and do her best and yet it wasn't enough.

"Doesn't matter. We have to get off this ship!" He pulled Lucy to her feet when he stood up.

Lucy reached for her keys.

"Maybe Aquarius could ...MY KEYS?" Lucy had lost her keys when they tumbled to the bow. Looking frantically, she spotted them next to the main mast.

Aquarius was so going to kill her for dropping the keys again. She sprinted towards them when another movement pulled the ship to the side. The stellar mage fell towards the right and hit the rail with her back. The impact was hard enough to knock her out. Since Gray was heavier, he just stumbled to the ground. When Lucy didn't get up again, dread pierced him like barbed wire. He scrambled to his feet, but stopped in his tracks when the sun disappeared. It took only a second for him to realize that he was standing in someone's or rather something's shadow. Something that was quite huge ...and smelled of ...fish?

He turned around and saw blue scales. Following the body up to the head, he identified the thing as a blue lizard-like monster with huge fangs and black claws. Its beady, red eyes were focused on the blonde. Whatever the thing had in mind, it couldn't be good. When it slowly started to reach for Lucy with it's claws, Gray formed a huge icicle and stabbed the things slimy paw but it had little effect.

"Only over my dead body!" He muttered, feeling that he had almost no energy left to fight. But he'd rather die than letting this thing harm his comrade. He expected everything, just not that the monster would answer.

"If you want..."

The Ice mage was caught off guard, so the next thing he felt was a hit to the side. The monster used the moment of surprise to slap him away like a fly. Gray hit the other side of the ship, now he was too far away to help Lucy who was still unconscious. He tried to get up, but before he could fully stand something slimy wrapped around him making it impossible for him to bring his hands together to use his magic. It was the monster's tail and it tried to squeeze the life out of him.

This was bad.

Lucy was knocked out, he himself was about to get crushed and their new comrade was missing. The tail lifted him into the air and then send him crashing into the deck. The monster repeated that a few times, swinging him around like a ragdoll until Gray couldn't tell up from down.

"You are boring." The lizard squeezed tighter and Gray was about to suffocate. He was gasping by now. The precious air became less and less and soon spots were dancing before his eyes. Lying on a ship and being squeezed to death like an orange was really not the way he wanted to die. The last thing he saw were black boots, then everything became dark.

~o~o~o~

Everything had gone as the sea monster had planned. The ship was in truth a total wreck. It used illusions to draw travelers on board and when they were far away from the shore the monster would attack and devour their souls. And if it was really hungry it would even eat their flesh. It let go of the male human before he could die. Souls were like butterflies in a glass container. If the body took too much damage, the soul would be gone and how could anyone devour a soul from a dead body? Impossible! The body had to be alive for the procedure.

Something was off. The monster was not the brightest among it's own kind, but weren't there three humans?

Then, the missing human stood in front of the beast. The monster didn't know what gender this human had. It looked genderless. That should be fun to find out, today the beast was really hungry!

~o~o~o~

Yuga stood in front of the monster seemingly not afraid or worried at all. His look spoke more of irritation than of fear. Gray was next to him, unconscious on the ground but luckily still breathing, even if it was faint. He came to the conclusions that the mage would be fine before slowly walking towards the bow, where the beast stood.

The monster was amused. This human actually had guts. There hadn't been a good opponent in a while to fight against. Most were merely a joke, like the male.

"It will be fun to eat you, human. I wonder what you taste like. Tough or maybe tender?" The beast licked its fangs with its split tongue.

Said human didn't make the impression to listen to its trash talk, but he certainly was about to give the thing a piece of his mind.

"Trying to interrupt my journey ...is foolish!" He raised his arm and closed his palm, not stopping his pace once.

Suddenly the sea water started rising when Yuga lifted his arm and froze around the beast when he closed his palm. Those red eyes became wide with disbelief when the ice enclosed the scaly body. This human was different. Trying to provoke the other into making a mistake, it relied on insults.

"You don't really think a weakling of a mage like you could ever beat me, do you?" If lizards could sweat, it certainly would have been doing so by now since its attempts to break the ice were in vain.

The dark eyed man moved forward, step by step.

"Insulting me ...is a crime!" Then he pointed with the same hand, which had been a fist seconds ago, to the ground.

The ice around the monster started to shift and forced its body to move. The blue head crashed into the wood of the deck, the same way as Gray's body had. If one looked from the outside, the monster had a submissive posture. With its head on the ground, it looked like a slave who groveled before his owner to beg for forgiveness. Yuga took the last few steps towards the head. The monster tried to snatch him with its fangs, but its opponent was faster and placed his leather boot right on the snout. It's red eyes crossed to actually see that the look on the other's face had changed into an angry one.

"But disturbing my nap ...is a death wish!" Grinding his boot into the snout to emphasize his point.

The words and the small demonstration of power was enough for the beast to recognize the person in front of it.

"Ma - Master Yuga! Hehe ...Uhm you su - sure have ch - changed." The voice was a bit muffled since Yuga wouldn't release him anytime soon. It really wished it was somewhere else right now.

Yuga still had his foot on the top of the snout and leaned slightly on his leg, making the pain even worse.

"Long time no see, Ankudma. If anyone has changed, it would be you. But your visage becomes you. ...It is an appropriate reflection of your soul." He answered in a voice as cold as the ice surrounding the beast. Ankudma's existence was hanging on a spider thread so maybe Yuga would be interested in some news and let him go.

"I - I know a few ...things. Let me go an - and I'll tell you."

That didn't seem to please him.

"First the information, then I will _'consider'_ releasing you."

It's not like Ankudma had much of a choice here. Yuga was known for having severe mood swings when somebody disturbed his sleep.

"Ok, ok. He - he'll come back, you know? Master - Master Zeref. He - he'll use h - h - his shadow t - to return."

That didn't seem to do the trick. Yuga's expression hadn't changed at all.

"So? I know that already. Or why should I be running around like this?" Yuga pointed to himself.

"Oh, um, ...I - I know how to stop him..." That would surely get Yuga to listen.

Or not. He just put more pressure on the snout.

"Ankudma, ...I am losing my patience!"

The lizard whined softly and tried hard to think of information to placate him.

"...ow ow, ...uh, ...Dumah!"

That got his attention. He let lifted his boot from Ankudma's snout, ready to listen to every single word the beast had to say. Yuga's body was tense and he clenched his fist. Ankudma could use the opportunity to try and bite him in half, but doubted that Yuga would stay still and watch, so he didn't even try.

"Well?"

"Ah, yes, ...uhm he - he is still ...alive!"

Those dark indigo eyes widened for a second before they narrowed in cold fury. He turned on his heel and walked stiffly back towards the stern. Ankudma wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad sign. It didn't know much about those two, just that they had a score to settle. Yuga stopped suddenly, but didn't turn around.

"Ankudma!" He called out

"Ye - yes?" The sharp tone in Yuga's voice didn't sound too promising.

"Do you think that I am stronger than Dumah?" He asked, still with his back to his enemy.

The monster couldn't imagine why he'd want to know that, but to disagree would be stupid.

"Of - of course, Master Yuga!" A short silence followed to let the words sink in before Yuga continued.

"And do you believe ...I could kill him with my own hands?" His voice was much calmer than before.

"Why certainly!" The hope was evident in Ankudma's voice.

Yuga's unclenched his fists and lifted his right arm slowly to the side. The lizard yelped when the ice pulled on its body, lifted it up and dragged it a bit away from the ship. The ship was still close enough when the ice jerked to a stop.

"Then you can die, knowing the truth!" With that, Yuga snapped the fingers of his right hand.

Ankudma didn't even have the time to protest when the ice around it shattered and destroyed the scaly body. Only the head, the neck and a bit of the shoulder were left. The red eyes lost their life quickly; all that remained was a carcass and bits of red tinted ice melting in the water. Yuga walked back to the bow, feeling better now that the reason for his irritation was gone. There was only one thing left to do. Reach Magnolia ...somehow. He doubted the ship's rudder was working and the sails were nothing more than rags. He let his gaze wander and spotted the shore. Ankudma had a simple mind. All it had done was to move the ship northward.

"What was it again? To the left? ...hmmm, I can still say we drifted away." Satisfied with the solution, Yuga lifted his hand and made a circling motion with his index finger.

The ship started turning on the spot to the left and when he stopped the movement; the vessel did as well. Then he pointed forward and a current appeared out of nowhere, dragging it slowly to the chosen direction. Seeing this, he sighed heavily.

"...That way, we will never reach Magnolia before dawn." He muttered.

Yuga considered his options quickly and came to the conclusion that he had to take risks to achieve anything at all. So he waved his arm towards the bow once and the current became stronger, pulling the wreck forward. The wood creaked in protest and the front started to rise a bit. He hoped this sorry excuse for a vessel would hold until they reached the harbor.

~o~o~o~

Someone was knocking on the door, or so Gray thought when he woke up. On second thought, it wasn't a door, more like his skull. The headache would kill him, if the rest of his body didn't do it first. Actually, there was no place that didn't hurt. He opened his eyes just to shut them again. Why was it so bright? It took some time to get used to the sunlight. A memory flashed through his mind. A lizard, him suffocating, ...Lucy! The ice mage tried to get up, ignoring the pain which spread through him like wildfire.

"Calm down, everything is alright." Someone said.

Trying to focus, he was met with black before he could blink the blurry sight away. Yuga knelt beside him and checked his injuries.

"The monster? Where? And - and Lucy?" Gray couldn't form a coherent sentence, he was still too agitated.

"She is over there." He pointed to Lucy, who lay on her back with her head resting on a makeshift pillow.

Gray wanted to check up on her, but the other pushed him back down.

"Sit! It is no use to get up now, you will fall down again! You might have a slight concussion. Lucy is fine, just unconscious."

As much as he hated to follow orders from a stranger, Yuga was probably right. He settled down and tried to breathe deeply. His ribs and lungs hurt from the monsters abuse. Thinking about it now, he still didn't know what happened.

"What about that monster?" Gray asked again.

"Well, that was strange. I heard some noise and when I left the cabin and came on deck, you and Lucy were unconscious. The monster let you go and then..." Yuga paused dramatically.

"Then?"

"...well, it spotted me and I sang him a lullaby. Then it disappeared." Gray blinked and couldn't quite grasp the words. Surely he had a concussion. He had to have one! There was only one intelligent answer to this.

"Huh?"

Yuga smirked slightly.

"What? You did not know that some monsters like music?"

That was too unbelievable, not like he had any other explanation.

"You're kidding me. Tell me the truth!" Gray demanded.

The dark clothed man stood up and stretched himself.

"It is the truth! I am a musician, did I not tell you about that? I sang a lullaby and it disappeared ...forever." With that Yuga walked towards Lucy.

The ice alchemist couldn't quite shake the feeling that Yuga was lying. He was so sure he'd seen him when he was about to pass out. Angry at himself, he punched the ground only for his fist to go right through the wood. When he looked down, he couldn't believe his eyes. The wood was rotten and he'd left a large hole. Taking in his surroundings, Gray noticed that the ship was indeed a wreck, like Yuga had said when they went on board. Was he the only one not affected by the illusion? In the end, he only went on board because they said so.

It didn't matter. For the moment, the only thing that mattered to him was Lucy's well-being. He wondered when she had become so important to him.

There was movement to the side and he saw the blonde get up slowly with Yuga's help. Gray gritted his teeth and tried to keep down his unreasonable anger. He was just helping her, that was all. The ice mage stood up with pain written in his face and spotted something close to the vessel which looked like …a bridge?

"Where are we?" He asked.

Lucy stumbled over to him to see for herself. Yuga scratched his nose and made an embarrassed impression.

"I have no idea. The current dragged us here. We could be anywhere." He answered.

Lucy did a double take.

"I think ...no I'm sure! We're in Magnolia!"

~o~o~o~

tbc.


	3. Bloopers part 1

**Disclaimer:** Do I have to? Again? ...Ok, ok. Fairy Tail does 'not' belong to me. I just borrowed the charas for my movie! XD

**Author's note: **I must admit I only had the idea since I had a writer's block which refused to budge. So I wrote the bloopers to my fanfic. as a way to deal with it. I hope you'll have fun with these and don't worry. My writer's block is over and chapter 3 will be up soon. So please don't kill my and enjoy the bloopers of my Fanfic.- Movie. ^^ Special Thanks goes to my beta: 'brightshadow16' who actually took the time to beta this right before her vacation. ^^

~o~o~o~

**Bloopers Chapter 1  
**Director: Misty Mina

~o~o~o~

"And action!"

Yuu zips through the air trying to get away from Happy. She flys in zig zags towards the window.

*boing* She bounces back.

"CUT!"

"Who the heck was stupid enough to close the window?"

*Natsu raises his hand*

"It was cold"

*director slaps her forehead*

~o~o~o~

_Scene 47 Take 2_

"Action"

Yuu zips through the air aiming for Mirajane's forehead …and misses.

"OW" She hits the floor!

"CUT! ! Maybe I should paint an X on Mira's forehead "

~o~o~o~

_Scene 50 Take 6_

Natsu went right to Happy, to make sure he was fine. His priorities were perfectly clear. Friends over curiosity, right? ...Right?

"Looks like a giant ...Ant, ...no wait, Cockroach? ...mouse?"

"CUT" It's 'Insect' This is the 6th try and you still forget that word?"

~o~o~o~

"What is your name?"

"Yuu!" She stated proudly.

"Me? What?"

"Yes, Yuu, ...I mean No, Yuu, ...Yuu, you big meanie you." Yuu starts to giggle uncontrollably

*smiles too* "Cut!"

~o~o~o~

Yuu whirled around with an annoyed look on her face and blew a raspberry at the Dragon Slayer.

"Yuu no fairy!" She said while flipping him off.

"CUT!" *waves the script* "That was not in the script!"

*Yuu giggles* "Yeah but I thought it fit."

"Thinking is the director's job! Not to mention the angry parents we'd have to deal with later."

~o~o~o~

"No! No! No! NOOOOOOO!" Yuu yelled as loud as she could, while waving her arms.

Then she fainted

"Cut! Call the medic, I think she ran out of air.!"

~o~o~o~

_Scene 71_

"AKTION!"

"Abaddon!"

The Master's eyes widened and his face drained of color. The guild couldn't make sense of the name, not even the older members. They started muttering, trying to figure out who that was.

"That's a strange name."

"Never heard of such a person."

"Maybe there is a new guild and their Master wants to introduce himself?"

"That's the guy working in that new pizzeria!"

"Cut, cut, CUT! Stop making up your own script! And that pizzeria guy's name is Alberto!" *glares*

~o~o~o~

_Scene 99 Last scene Take 1_

"Yep. Yuu is Underworld Massager! Has important message for Guild!"

*laughs* "Cut"

"What?" Yuu looks puzzled.

"Oh nothing, just that it's 'Messenger'" *lols*

~o~o~o~

**Bloopers Chapter 2**

~o~o~o~

_Scene 5 Take 1_

Suddenly there was a muffled voice.

"What ..." Lucy began, but was silent when Gray lifted his hand.

Two girls jumped out of the woods.

"WAAAHHHH THEY'RE REALLY HERE!"

"I WANT AN AUTOGRAPH!"

"MARRY ME GRAY!"

"CUT! Call security, we have a severe infestation of fangirls."

~o~o~o~

_Scene 17 Take 2_

"Action!"

"They aren't up to any good. We'd taint the guild's name if we just let them go."

The blonde frowned. Was that the usual excuse for 'let's get ourselves in trouble, danger and possibly killed'?

"We'll just follow them for now... Then ...uhm... we... go off and have a quiet moment." He said while leering at Lucy.

"CUT! The quiet moment will have to wait for much, much later you pervert!"

"I can't help it!"

~o~o~o~

_Scene 31 Take 1_

"Action!"

"Ok, listen! I'll distract them and get those idiots to follow me. You go and check up on the girl when the coast is clear. If by chance one stays behind, you can handle him."

"Ok!"

Without looking back Gray took off. Not even using his magic, he punched the first man in sight. But the man didn't go down.

"uhm, ...you should faint now!" Gray whispered.

"Oh! OW ooohhh the pain! Death awaits me, ...farewell my comrades... my strength is fading. ...My eyes will close, ...and here ...in the woods, ...I'll take my last breath ..." The man wouldn't stop.

"Cut!"

"...And I saw the Angels..."

"Cut!"

"...And God called my name..."

"CUT!"

"...And so I go..."

"CUT! Get that idiot out of my sight! This role was without text. Get me someone who can actually read a script! *seethes*

~o~o~o~

"Another sweet doll? Today is my lucky day!" He leered, too stupid and perverted to know what Lucy was up to. She held the key out in front of her, summoning her spirit.

"Open! A door to the bull, Taurus!"

But it wasn't Taurus who appeared it was Loki.

"Cut! What the heck are _'you'_ doing here?" *points with the rolled up script towards Loki*

"I'm here because I'm not pleased with the script!"

"Then file a complaint! We are busy here, you know? And where is Taurus?"

*Loki childishly stomps his foot*

"I'm not leaving here until you change the script! I want to be the paired up with Lucy! C'mon you did that once, you can do it again. Or maybe we could discuss this when I take you out for dinner, what do you say? *winks before getting the script in his face*

"First, I'm not interested loverboy. Second, you had your chance and didn't show up because you had a date! Third, you will have to work to be in my good graces again. And finally, ...if you ever do so much as showing up again when it's not in the script, I'll make sure to hunt your sorry behind down and call Gray to freeze you before I'll rip your arm off to bash your skull in with it! I'll give you three seconds, use them wisely and run!"

"But..."

"One!" *walks over to the props*

"I mean, ..."

"Two... " *takes out a spear*

"Uh oh..." *poofs away*

"Hmmm, ...Damn. I really wanted to try that out..."

~o~o~o~

When he reached the girls, he saw that Lucy was still in the other girl's arms with her head resting on the others shoulder and one hand at her chest. He felt a twinge when he saw them like this, yet thought nothing of it. The last thing he wanted to admit was that he may be disgusted by two girls being together like that.

"Are you two alright?" He asked.

*Lucy didn't move and stayed where she was*

"Cut! Lucy that's the point where you move away"

"...Do I have to?" *Lucy snuggles up*

"Uh yes, that's in the script! You are supposed to be with Gray and not Yuga and nooo don't look at me like that, I won't change it. Gray cool yourself off and put that fake rock down!"

~o~o~o~

_Scene 79 Take 2_

Gray's eyes widened, there was no way he would allow that.

"Lucy, could I speak to you for a second, in private?" He dragged her a few steps away from this stranger.

*head towards the closet*

"Cut! Hey Gray you don't have to go so far away. We still need you on the camera. ...Don't you dare close that closet. Hey! Out you two, now!

~o~o~o~

_Scene 89 Take 2_

They reached the sea about two hours later.

Gray was strong, but carrying someone for so long was exhausting.

"Hey Lucy. C'mon wake up. We reached the sea, what now?" Ok, more like he wasn't sure which direction to take.

...

...

...

"Uhm, Lucy?"

*a light snore*

"Cut! ...Wake her up, she really fell asleep..."

~o~o~o~

They walked along the shore for awhile before something caught their eyes.

"Hey ...is that a ship?" Lucy asked.

"Is that a plane?" Gray asked.

"...No it's the director waving her script around and she'll try to kill us for that joke." Yuga answered.

"CUT!"

~o~o~o~

_Scene 105 Take 3_

"Since we are here, I guess I will take a look at the cabins. I need a nap."

Lucy's eyes widened.

"Again? Weren't you sleeping when we first met?"

The handsome man shrugged, not really surprised with her reaction.

"There is nothing to do here. Besides that, I take a nap whenever I feel like it. Those who are asleep ...do not sin. Except you don't want me to sleep at all..." Yuga added a wink for good measure.

"Cut! The line is good but not in the script. And Gray stop strangling him! We still need Yuga and I can assure you, I won't change the pairing!"

~o~o~o~

_Scene 111 Take 1_

"And Action!"

The monster was amused. The human actually had guts. There hadn't been a good opponent in a while to fight against. Most were merely a joke, like the male.

"It will be fun to eat you, human. I wonder what you taste like. Burger, chicken, fish, maybe like fruit or ..."

"Cut! Don't think too much of it, you won't get a taste."

"Hmmm why not?"

*smirks darkly along with Yuga*

"Ohhhhh you'll see soon enough...mwahahahaha"

~o~o~o~

"Well, that was strange. I heard some noise and when I left the cabin and came on deck, you and Lucy were unconscious. The monster let you go and then..." Yuga paused dramatically.

"Then?"

"...then,..."

"Then?"

"..I asked for its number! Damn, I forgot the text!" *Yuga shouts*

"*lol* cut!"

~o~o~o~

_Scene 124 Take 1_

"Action!"

The ice alchemist couldn't quite shake the feeling that Yuga was lying. He was so sure he'd seen him when he was about to pass out. Angry at himself, he punched the ground... *Gray breaks through the deck*

"Cut, ...I guess the wood is too rotten! Hehe..." *sweatdrops*

~o~o~o~

End ...for now. ^^

I hope you liked the bloopers. I had much fun, the cast anyway and we all hope you want to see more of those nice little accidents. Review please.


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Do I have to? Again? ...Ok, ok. Fairy Tail does 'not' belong to me. I just borrowed the charas! And maybe I'll give them back, ...after a looong time. XD

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews for the bloopers. I didn't think someone actually found them funny. ^^

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 3  
**by Misty Mina

The ruckus at Fairy Tail still hadn't died down. All of the guild members were outraged. Some yelled in anger, some were quiet in mute shock and others discussed the news with their fellow mages. Makarov was patient with them, knowing there were many questions to be answered. When the noise reached an unbearable level, he slammed his cane on the table. The mages stopped what they were doing before to listen to their master.

"Quiet down. I know this must be a shock for you all. But we should hear her out." He turned his gaze to Yuu only to discover an empty spot.

Yuu had backed away when all of the noise started. She couldn't really comprehend why they were so nervous. Out of fear, she hid behind the next best thing, which was the master's beer mug. Carefully she peered from behind the mug when it became silent. Telling herself to be brave she flew out of her hiding place and landed next to the old master. The members of the guild were staring at her now with wary expressions.

"Well? What is Abaddon's message?" Makarov asked.

Yuu took something out of a hidden pocket on her black dress and flew upwards in front of the old mage. From what he could tell, it was a tiny scroll. He wondered how he was supposed to read that. But Yuu had a solution for the problem already. She put her hands on each end of the scroll and activated a seal, then dropped it. While it fell, it expanded until it was the size of a regular scroll. The master swiftly caught the piece of rolled up paper before it could reach the floor.

The guild watched while he opened the scroll, expecting a hologram of a beast called Abaddon to pop up like in their magical letters, but nothing happened. Obviously Abaddon didn't need magical letters or was too old fashioned to use them.

Everyone held their breath when Makarov read the lines with a frown of concentration. Not really believing his eyes, he started to read the letter again after he'd finished. Natsu couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Hey, what does it say, old Geezer?" The Fire mage asked, expecting and maybe hoping for a declaration of war to end his boredom.

The master put the scroll down when he was absolutely sure that there was no mistake.

"It is an official request!" He answered.

The whole ruckus started again. However this time the members were more agitated than before.

"Why should we do that?"

"No way! That must be a joke!"

"I won't do anything evil!"

"Do we have a choice?"

That was what Makarov anticipated. When people heard the word 'Underworld', they associate it with something evil. He slammed his cane repeatedly on the table to get the guild's attention back.

"I think there is a big misunderstanding here." He started.

The guild couldn't even fathom what they could have misunderstood.

"I guess, all of you think the same. That Abaddon is an evil God who rules the Underworld."

Nods and affirmative sounds were his answer.

"I can assure you, ...the Underworld is 'not' hell! And Abaddon is not the devil. He is neither. Not good nor evil."

All masters knew that piece of information. It was the knowledge of the old world. Everyone who wanted to become a master or was chosen to inherit the title had to study the topic under the council's supervision.

Now the guild seemed to be curious.

"Then what is he, master?" One of the others asked.

The old mage considered letting the small messenger do the explaining, but dropped the thought. His guild probably wouldn't believe her, so it would be better if he told them.

"Abaddon is the keeper of balance in this world." That explanation caused many confused stares. Some not really understanding what he said, others couldn't really imagine it.

"Imagine our world as a scale. On one side, we have 'good', on the other 'evil'. When good and evil are on equal terms, then the world is in balance. If either side gets to heavy, the world falls out of balance and into chaos." Now that was an explanation most could work with.

"So, that means, that Abaddon is the one who holds the scale. And when one side gets too heavy, he interferes to balance it out." Mirajane mused.

Now everyone got it, well, except Natsu. But he understood that Abaddon was not the bad guy, so he could live with that.

"You still haven't told us what it says, old man!" Natsu said with an urgent tone in his voice.

"Aye!"

Sighing at the youngster's impatience he put the scroll aside.

"Abaddon requests the help of Fairy Tail to stop the apocalypse."

All of them stood there with open mouths and were totally flabbergasted.

"And how should we do that master?" This time it was Levy who asked.

"It seems like Zeref is about to return. The request is to aid Abaddon's servants in every way we can."

They had all heard of Zeref, the great dark mage who managed to shake the world to its core. So Abaddon's goal, this time, was to prevent the scale of the world from dropping to the evil side.

"Before we do anything, I want to make sure that this is what the guild wants. It is a request. We have the right to refuse it. But if we accept, then everybody has to do their best. What do you say?" Makarov always thought of the guild members first.

Mumbling could be heard in the building. The responsibility was great. If they failed, they were all doomed. Suddenly Natsu jumped onto the next table.

"What is there to think about? Of course we agree!" He yelled.

Natsu might not be the brightest of them but sometimes it was better to listen to his words. So they did exactly that. Stare and listen.

"If that Zeref guy comes back, I'm ready to beat him up. I won't go down without a fight! It is our life and our world. If we don't even try to protect that, then none of us is worthy to be a member of this guild." Natsu declared with fire not only in his fists, but also in his heart.

He was right, they were many things, but not just a bunch of cowards. They would do everything in their power to prevent Zeref's return.

"What are we waiting for?"

"Let's do this!"

"If you're a man, you will fight with honor!"

"There is nothing we cannot do!"

Proud of his guild the master turned to an awestruck messenger.

"I think we accept the request. So how about you reveal the rest of the message?"

That got the others attention.

"What? There is more?" Levy asked.

Makarov had noticed a hidden seal on the page of the scroll. Abaddon was honorable enough to leave them a choice. If they'd refused, Yuu would have gone to another guild with the same content, he was sure of that. He put the scroll on the surface of the bar besides him and held it down. The lines only took half of the scroll the other half was empty. Yuu stepped onto the paper until she was in the middle of the blank area. For a moment she started to glow in a deep, purple light and when it vanished, there were new lines to be seen. She took off and landed on the bar again.

The master read the new lines first and made sure not to overlook a point. His eyes got wider with every point he read. It didn't take long for curiosity to win over patience.

"What is it, master?"

"Yeah, you look kind of pale!"

He put the scroll in his lap and looked seriously at Wendy and Carla.

"I think we need your help as well Wendy."

"My help? What for?"

Carla had a say in this as well.

"No Wendy, that's too dangerous for you. You're still too young to take missions!"

The white cat was her best friend and had always been by her side no matter what. But Wendy felt that she had to do this.

"I'm sorry Carla, but I want to help however I can." Wendy twiddled with a ribbon on her dress.

As much as Carla wanted to protest, she knew if Wendy had set her mind on something she couldn't change it. Sighing she crossed her paws and turned to Makarov.

"Wherever she goes, I'll go with her. Period!" She didn't plead to go with her, she demanded it.

Makarov nodded.

"I expected that and I'll send someone else with you, don't worry. Now to your assignment. It seems like one of Abaddon's servants, the Earth Demon, is missing"

When Makarov mentioned the word 'demon', the guild looked at him with wary expressions.

"But master, why should Abaddon have demons as servants? I thought he was neutral." Levy, the ever curious bookworm, asked.

"He is! I don't know why he keeps them or how he managed to tame them, but they are loyal to him. His wish is their command."

"Them? There are more? Are they like that friggin' flute or that Deliora-thing?" Natsu asked with wide eyes.

"Hmmm, I don't know how big they are. All I know is that Abaddon has at least three demons under his command. And their power surpasses the Lullaby and Deliora by far."

Now the guild started to doubt the sincerity of the request. If that god kept demons of that size, why would he need humans at all? Only to search and find them? Or maybe even to sacrifice them to the hungry demons? They were all worried over it, well all except for the Dragon Slayer.

"Really? That's so great! I'll fight one of them for sure!" Natsu punched the air in excitement.

"Aye!"

Makarov shook his head. Someday the youngster would get himself killed with that kind of attitude. He just knew it. Wendy waved her hand to get the master's attention

"Uhm, excuse me master, but what exactly is my mission now?"

The old man had forgotten the poor girl over Natsu's babble.

"Ah, yes. Your mission is to find the Earth Demon and heal it if it's hurt in any way."

That confused the raven haired girl a bit.

"Where should I start with searching? And what if it takes months?"

The master pointed to their small guest.

"It's written that Yuu knows where it could be. She will help you."

The messenger nodded eagerly.

Suddenly, the master heard a faint growl. It was too low to be heard by the other members, but he and Carla, with her fine hearing, could pick it up. They turned their heads to look at the source. A small Underworld Messenger who held her stomach.

Smiling the old mage beckoned his head waitress over.

"Hey Mira, I think our guest here is hungry."

The white haired woman tilted her head to the side.

"Oh my, what does a Pixie eat?"

Mirajane made the mistake to say the P-word.

"Yuu no Pixie!"

"Oh I'm sorry Yuu, I've forgotten. Say, what would you like to eat?" Maybe that would calm the angry Messenger.

"Yuu like sweet things."

So the small not-Pixie had a sweet tooth.

"That's good. I've some cookies here. I made them this morning."

Yuu gave her a confused stare.

"Cookies?" She asked.

The white haired mage concluded that there were no cookies in the Underworld, but as long as Yuu liked sweets, the cookies would be the perfect choice. She ran swiftly into the kitchen and came back with a plate full with chocolate chip cookies. The kind that Elfman secretly liked, but wouldn't dare to say out loud. Because everyone knew, liking cookies wasn't manly! When she placed the plate next to the master, Yuu came closer to take a good look at those sweets. She had never seen something like this. But if the smell was any indication, it must taste delicious. Yuu tried to take a cookie, but noticed it was quite huge for her size. It still didn't stop her from trying. She used all her strength to drag one cookie off the plate. However the cookie was heavier, so Yuu's small hands slipped and she tumbled backwards.

Mirajane smiled at her antics, she wondered how something so cute could work in the Underworld. Feeling pity for the hungry messenger, she took one cookie, broke a quarter out of it and handed it to Yuu. Now the quarter was still big, but small enough for her to hold it. She took a bite of the cookie and tasted the chocolate.

"Yummy!" She yelled with sparkling eyes and eagerly devoured it.

While Yuu was busy with her cookie, Makarov read out the rest of the message.

"There is more to it."

This got Natsu's attention.

"More? Maybe I can finally get some action!" Natsu shouted.

The master chose not to answer him. There would be more than enough to do, no need to encourage the fire mage.

"It says that Zeref will use his own shadow to free himself. Apparently all the rumors of him being dead are wrong. If Abaddon tells the truth, then Zeref had been sealed away. He'd anticipated that and used his living magic to breathe life into his own shadow. Then he sealed it away with a diminishing seal." He explained

Levy raised her hand.

"Excuse me Master, but what exactly is a diminishing seal? I've never heard of it."

"It's a seal that gets weaker over time and will break on its own when enough time has passed by. Zeref was quite clever when he thought of that. A shadow is like a twin. It follows every movement, every gesture and every step one makes. By giving the shadow life, he made sure to have a replica of himself, which will either free him or continue where he left off."

The situation was worse than the guild thought. If the great black mage came back or someone of his caliber took his place, then the world as they knew would be no more.

"Then what should we do master?" Mirajane asked anxiously.

"There was a cult who defeated Zeref and sealed him away, but after the battle there were only two members left. It seems like they've found out about the shadow, but were too weak to fight it. So they chose to write down the knowledge and hope that someone in the future would be strong enough to destroy it. The first part is hidden in a temple on Galuna Island. I suppose it's that moon temple. The other is somewhere in the desert"

"I get it!" Levy shouted.

Startled by her outburst the guild members turned to her.

"The survivors made sure that their information was safe from Zeref's creations. Like the Lullaby. Demons! They didn't know about Abaddon or that he has demons as his servants. Even if their intention is to save the world, they can't enter the place." Levy explained, proving once more that she was one of the smartest in the guild.

"Right. A demon could never enter a holy place." This was a voice which didn't belong to any of the mages.

Turning their heads they tried to find the source. Not a second later a blue glow appeared and headed straight to Yuu, knocking the poor messenger away from the cookies. Yuu yelped and rolled away from her spot.

"Hmmph, I can't even imagine why Lord Abaddon would give an important task to you!" The blue disappeared and in its place stood another messenger with small white wings.

This messenger looked different than Yuu. Her eyes were dark yellow, almost orange. Her skin was blue, her hair had a pale turquoise color, a black star pin decorated her hair and it was tied in short pigtails which seemed to be a common fashion trait in the Underworld. She wore a deep red tanktop, hot pants of the same color, long black gloves, brown boots and a black, belted overskirt. The front side of the skirt was cut out, showing off her pants.

She perfectly fit the term of an Underworld Messenger.

Yuu sat up and winced in pain.

"Ow, ...what is Thalia doing here?" Yuu asked the other messenger in her childish way.

"Unlike you, I take my job seriously. It's not like anyone of us can hang around the elite. Hmmpf." With that the new arrival named Thalia turned away with her nose high up in the air.

It looked like Thalia was very different. She spoke in a mature way, even though she also had the looks of a child.

"And who might you be?" Makarov asked.

The new messenger turned to the human with obvious disdain.

"My name is Thalia and I'm here to bring you humans another message from the high Lord of the Underworld. He had no time to write it all down so I'll tell you what he expects of you!"

Yep, Thalia held her nose quite high for being so short. The members were glad that they had met Yuu first or they might've considered their decision to accept the request.

"So far he wants you to find and heal the Earth Demon, find and decipher the writings in those two temples and try and find Zeref's shadow." She recited

"Huh? Wait! Nobody said anything about finding that thing!" Natsu interfered.

"I wanted to say that just now." Makarov defended himself.

Thalia flipped one of her pigtails back.

"Yeah, I figured as much. If that retard," she pointed to Yuu, "would have gotten here sooner, I wouldn't have to do all the explaining."

Yuu looked down and tried to make herself as small as possible.

"Yuu no retard." She mumbled, but Thalia picked it up anyway.

"What was that? I can't hear you, elite-pet! It sounded like you try to talk back, but that's impossible." She taunted.

Yuu didn't raise her head when Thalia said those cruel words. Too intimidated to say anything, she just stayed there and began to twiddle her fingers. Thalia became bored with her fellow messenger, so she turned back to the guild.

"Anyway, there is something else you should know about. Abaddon hasn't been able to contact the Thunder Demon, so you will have to look for him as well."

That got Yuu's attention.

"Sparky is missing?" She asked with wide eyes.

Thalia didn't even spare her a glance, instead she just clenched her tiny fists. Probably trying to restrain herself from strangling the other. Noticing her patience wearing thin, Makarov decided to divert her attention from Yuu.

"That's a lot to ask for when we have to look after the earth demon as well. So how should we find the thunder demon?"

It worked, Thalia forgot about Yuu for the moment. She flew to Makarov and took a tiny scroll out of a hidden pocket in her overskirt. Using the same trick as Yuu, she broke the seals at the ends of the scroll before she almost threw it at the old man. The master caught it with a frown on his face. This messenger was a rude bimbo. Unraveling the scroll, he saw it wasn't a message, like Thalia said, Abaddon was too busy for that. It was an old map with an X on a certain spot.

"I suppose that's where we should find that thunder demon?" He pointed to the X marked spot which showed an island far south of their continent.

"It's the place where he was before we lost contact with him." She answered.

As far as Makarov knew this island was a tropical jungle. A thunder demon in a tropical jungle. Now what was that thing doing there? Shrugging at the question he rolled up the map and thought who he could send on so many, important missions.

While the master seemed to be lost in thought, Thalia gave a last glare at Yuu before she started to glow blue again and took off, leaving the guild as fast as she could. The guild members were just glad she was gone. Everyone was sure that they couldn't stand to be in her presence for another minute.

Yuu walked back towards the cookies when she was sure that her fellow messenger was really gone. She didn't like Thalia, but she certainly didn't hate her either. The other Non-Pixie was always angry at her and Yuu didn't even know the reason. As far as Yuu was concerned, she had little to do with her.

Seeing Yuu munching on her cookies again, Mirajane let out a relieved sigh. She was glad that their little guest hadn't lost her appetite.

"What now, Master?" She asked a bit worried.

That was a good question. He had many mages but not all of them were qualified for those missions. If anything, he will have to choose a few and put them into a larger group. Of course he'd send out his best mages, but he just didn't know on what mission. Erza was on a mission already, Gray and Lucy would be back soon but would be tired as well, Gajeel was on his special mission (which meant he kept an eye on Makarov's wayward son), Laxus was out of the guild, Mystgun hadn't been seen in a while and the list would go on.

It was no use, They'll have to wait until Gray and Lucy were back. Then he could send them with Natsu on one of those missions. They made a good team even without Erza. Hopefully they were not hurt on their mission and if so, maybe Wendy could do something to help them.

~o~o~o~

Juvia wandered through the streets of Magnolia on her way back to the guild. There wasn't much to do if her beloved was not around. Even worse, he was gone with her rival. Well at least Juvia considered Lucy her rival, although Lucy denied this. Of course she didn't like the thought of those two being together on this mission. However there was nothing she could've done to prevent this. It was the master's order.

The blue haired mage wondered if Lucy was just being totally oblivious or was maybe trying to avoid a possible cat fight by denying being her rival.

Anyway, Juvia swore to herself she wouldn't go down without a fight. She had to at least try to win Gray's affection. Yet, it seemed the more she tried, the more he drifted towards her rival.

She felt down when she caught him glancing at Lucy with affection in his eyes. Maybe he hadn't noticed it himself, but she had.

Those were the times when Juvia wished the rain that had followed her since she was a child would start anew. Of course she was thankful to Gray that she had been able to see the blue sun filled sky, but now without the rain, she felt a sense of loneliness. It had always been there, protecting her, providing her with an unlimited amount of her element and chased false friends off. Yes at first she was annoyed that everyone left her because of the rain and she wished to see the blue sky she'd only heard of. Now that it was gone, something was missing. As people say, 'You only know what you had when it's gone.'

It was a crazy thought she knew that, but Juvia missed the rain as much as she would miss a person. A family member maybe. Then again, she doesn't really know how that feels like. Juvia grew up without her parents. She was an orphan and her surname Lockser was written in her papers. There was a time when she had tried to find them before she'd joined Phantom Lord. But the town which had been written as her birthplace had been destroyed long ago. She had asked around in nearby villages, yet no one could really give her a straight answer to what had happened there.

Approximately the town had been destroyed around the same time when she came to the orphanage. So she guessed they had been killed in whatever caused the destruction and gave up.

After hearing about Gray's own past, Juvia felt so much closer to him. She was so sure they belonged together. It just couldn't be a coincidence, could it?

Sighing at her thoughts she turned around the corner and headed towards the main road which led to the guild.

Suddenly she felt a pressure in the air. Something felt different, but also quiet familiar. Looking down the road, she saw three figures at the entrance of the Fairy Tail building. And judging by the blonde hair and unique hairstyle one of them was Lucy, yet Juvia was too far away to be sure.

So if one of them was her Gray-sama, who was the third?

She ran down the street as fast as she could to find out and of course greet her crush with a passionate and loved filled hug.

~o~o~o~

Tbc.


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I'm getting tired of this. Fairy Tail is a amazing Manga and Anime, sadly it does not belong to me. *sigh*

**Author's note:** I had to go through my stories again and change one or two things. One was that now officially our little water maiden's name is truly 'Juvia' like it showed in the anime. During the great Tournament there was a short moment and the name was really spelled Juvia. There is proof now. I'm sorry and I'll correct my errors. Also I will try and change other names when FF-net changes their name tags to avoid further confusion. Like changing Charle's name into Carla, even though I prefer Charle.

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 4**  
by Misty Mina

"Thanks for your help Yuga. I doubt, I could've carried Gray to the guild by myself." Lucy was tired enough to drop into the next available chair and sleep 'til next day.

Gray grumbled a bit under his breath. It hurt his pride to actually depend on a stranger. On the other hand, he had a hard time standing much less walking around.

Yuga had slung Gray's arm over his shoulder and supported him while they walked to the guild. Just to spite Yuga, Gray tried to make himself heavier and drag him down. To let Lucy see for herself how weak a pretty guy could be. Strangely, his body didn't listen to him, but considering what he'd been through he waved it off as exhaustion.

Maybe Wendy was in the guild and could take care of his wounds. The last thing he wanted was to be bed-ridden for weeks. He hated to be weak, much more to show it like at this very moment. Gray couldn't wait until the bastard would leave them alone and be on his merry way. Thankfully they stood in front of the doors to the guild. It wouldn't be long now.

"You are welcome. But you both should see a medic as soon as possible." Yuga replied, looking slightly concerned.

"Don't worry we will. It was nice to travel with you." Lucy opened the doors to the guild to step inside.

Gray tried to untangle himself and get as far away from the other man as human possible. But suddenly his legs gave out on him. Luckily, Yuga caught him before he could hit the ground. The ice mage stared at his legs with a shocked expression. This was no exhaustion. Something was pushing him down. If there had been heat he would have known the culprit, but there was just the feeling of something he couldn't explain.

"Gray! Are you ok?" Of course he wasn't, but Lucy couldn't help but ask.

It felt like the ice magic in his veins had turned against him, running wild and refusing to listen.

"Yuga, could you help him inside? I know it's a lot to ask from you, but..." The blonde didn't know what to do. In all the battles they went through Gray had looked strong, even if he was battered and bleeding. But now, he looked like he'd fought Deliora on his own.

The dark haired beauty picked him up again.

"Of course. I was not about to leave him on your doorstep." He smiled slightly.

Did Gray get a say in this? No, of course not. If he had his way, he would kick Yuga before crawling into the guild on his hands and knees. Before he could protest they went through the door, only to discover a large crowd in front of the bar.

~o~o~o~

Everyone in the guild had calmed down. Nobody could do anything else but sit and wait until their Master would decide whom to send on a mission. Things went back to the way it had been before Yuu's arrival minus the usual brawl.

Makarov thought over the whole mess. The best course of action would be to send two teams out to search for those two missing demons. A third team would make their way to Galuna Island.

The problem was the second location. A temple in a desert. The desert was a place where one could search for years and not make any progress at all.

He would have to put the problem aside for the time being. Important would be the first two teams. Since Erza was absent, it would make three people. Natsu, Gray and Lucy. Well, he could still send Natsu with Happy, but he doubted the fire mage would be pleased to be separated from his comrades again.

Although Gray and Lucy would be tired from their mission, he was certain they could take on the next after a good night's sleep.

If Wendy had to go and look for the Earth Demon she would need protection. So his first thought was to send her with Natsu's team.

The Master's thoughts where interrupted when the doors to his guild opened. What he saw was not what he expected. There stood a disheveled looking Lucy and a beaten up Gray in his doorway. What were those two doing? Walking through hell and back? But what really caught Makarov's interest was the stranger, who helped Gray into the next seat available.

The stranger was pretty like a woman. However, Makarov knew that this person was in fact male. The Master was too old to be fooled by looks alone. But there was something else as well. Whoever he was, he was powerful. As one of the ten sages, Makarov could sense power like others could sense the temperature. He wasn't a guild master for nothing. The amount of power felt like a giant weight had settled onto his lungs.

The stranger let go of Gray and turned around to face the guild master. There was something in his dark eyes. It looked like mirth or amusement.

After their shock over their comrades' condition, the whole guild started to treat them. Asking question, bandaging wounds and let Wendy do some of her healing magic. Through the whole uproar in the background, the old man and the new arrival never broke eye contact.

The black haired man took two steps into the Master's direction when the door flew open again. Juvia stood there panting like she had run through the whole town. She had a happy look on her face and was searching for her crush with her eyes. The happy look vanished when she saw the condition Gray was in. His remaining clothes were torn and his body was full of cuts and bruises. Rushing to his side, she didn't even notice the outsider who stood only two steps away.

Yet the stranger had noticed her and if Makarov wasn't mistaken, the color had drained out of the other's face. But the stranger's surprise or maybe shock had worn off before others could notice. Composing himself, he approached the Master again.

Yuga bowed slightly before addressing the old man.

"Greetings Master of Fairy Tail. I do mean no harm, neither to you nor to thy children."

As far as Makarov knew the greeting was correct. Ancient, but correct. In a time long ago, when guilds had just started to form over the land, this was the correct greeting an outsider had to say when they visited a guild. Be it to visit family, friends, if they wished to join or had a personal request. Things were different nowadays. Nobody really remembered it and even if they did, nobody bothered to use it.

"Then thou shall be our guest. Tell us thy name and the meaning of thy visit."

A few of the guild members had strange looks on their faces. They've never heard their master talk like this. Normally his language was borderline to slang and they got used to it. They never imagined that he knew formal greetings.

"I am …"

But before Yuga could actually answer, a happy squeal could be heard and not a second later a tiny messenger clung to his black tunic.

"Master Yuga!" Yuu squealed and tried to snuggle up while still using her tiny wings in midair.

Makarov raised and eyebrow before concluding the meaning of the messenger's outburst. Still his guild didn't get it. They just stood there gaping, not really knowing what to make of the picture.

Gray, Lucy and Juvia, who hadn't even noticed the tiny guest, were the most clueless out of everyone.

Yuga didn't react harsh or embarrassed; instead he smiled slightly before tipping Yuu's head carefully like someone would pat a child's head.

"Did you deliver the request?" He asked.

Backing off to look into his dark eyes she nodded vigorously.

"Yuu good girl. Brought request to guild. Guild accepted! Master Yuga pleased with Yuu?" She babbled with sparkling eyes.

"Yes Yuu and Lord Abaddon will be pleased as well. Go and report this to him, while I will talk to the Master. I also heard there is a reward waiting for you". Nodding once she flew away as quickly as possible, not to get the reward but to do as he said.

When the Underworld Messenger was gone, the Master turned back to their new guest.

"I assume you are one of Abaddon's servants."

Lucy didn't know what this was all about. She didn't know who Abaddon was or why the Pixie called Yuga 'Master'. So she decided to stay silent and listen. Surely Makarov would tell them later.

Gray on the other hand had other suspicions. He had heard of Abaddon while he was still Ur's student. Rumors said that the Lord of the Underworld creates demons and Deliora was one of those creations. So that would mean that Yuga was certainly not human! Maybe now Lucy would see that he had been right the whole time.

"Gray-sama what…?" Juvia started

Ignoring the fussing Juvia by his side, he used the bit of magic he had regained while Wendy had healed most of his wounds and sent an ice spray into Yuga's direction.

Suddenly the ice halted in it's way and shattered not a second later without harming Yuga or anyone else.

"I knew it! You are not human! You tricked us into trusting you so we would lead you to the guild!" Gray accused.

Yuga didn't even turn fully around; he merely glanced at the ice mage over his shoulder.

"First, I never claimed to be human. Second, I certainly did not trick you, I was lost. And third, it is impolite to interrupt someone when they are introducing themselves. So…"

Gray felt a pull on his body and he was forced back into the chair he'd been sitting on.

"…better sit down before you hurt yourself."

Now Gray understood a few things which had made no sense before. He didn't kill the mercenary. Yuga took control of the blast and killed him. He also defeated the sea monster and he took control over his body to somehow weaken him so they would invite him into their guild.

Juvia had enough. She didn't know what was going on. But nobody did that to her love. Furious with the stranger, she sent two water slicers at him. Surprised, Yuga whirled around and ducked the attack instead of taking control over it.

The water mage was about to attack him with all she got when Lucy cut in.

"Gray, Juvia, stop! What right do you have to attack him? He helped us! Master, please stop this!" Lucy cried out.

Nobody had seen how Yuga had twitched when Lucy told her comrades to stop and nobody had seen the look of realization either. Trying to keep his composure he acted like nothing had happened at all.

Makarov knew Gray tended to jump to conclusions, but this was overdoing it. He could feel real fury in the normally aloof mage.

"Gray, enough! Didn't you hear what he said? The Greeting of the old world? He will keep his word!"

Yuga released his control over the ice mage to show the Master his good will. Juvia went back to his side and started to fuss over Gray again. She could see the burning anger in his eyes and it looked also like a hint of jealousy. But she couldn't imagine why. Yuga was definitely not better than her Gray and if she hadn't heard his voice she would have bet that he was girl.

He was too slim, had no visible muscles and his features were too soft for a man. Juvia liked handsome men, not pretty boys. Lucy would be more the type to look for pretty boys.

Now that would be a good idea.

Juvia's mind started to scheme a plan. If Lucy looked at other men, men like Yuga, who were the total opposite of her Gray-sama, then he just had to realize that she wasn't the right girl for him. All she had to do was to give a helping hand.

Gray rubbed his neck in frustration. Maybe Makarov was right and he should count to ten and try to listen what Yuga had to say. The whole guild seemed to know what was going on, except Lucy and him. Well maybe Juvia too, he didn't know. At the moment she was annoying him with her fussing. He didn't need a patch on every scratch she could spot.

Makarov sighed heavily.

'Youngsters these days….' He thought.

"Well, since everyone has calmed down, why don't you tell us who you are?" He asked Yuga again and chose to cast the formalities aside.

Yuga turned around slowly with a last lingering glance at the busy water mage before he did what the old master asked of him.

"I am Yuga, …the Water Demon. Abaddon sends me to assist you."

~o~o~o~

The help was unexpected, but not unwelcome for the guild. Gray, Lucy and Juvia had been filled in on the whole mess. If their reactions were anything to go by, then they were everything but happy about the current situation. Not like Natsu who couldn't wait to take on the assignment. He didn't want to wait until the next morning to do something and had packed up his things, ready to go.

Makarov had to hold him back by force. There was no point in leaving the guild alone and without a single idea of where to go.

The whole guild wanted to ask their new arrival so many questions. However, Makarov would have none of it. He ordered them to leave Yuga alone. They had better things to do than play 21 Questions!

It was late at night when most of the guild had either left or retired to their rooms in the building. Gray and Lucy rested in Fairy Tail's own Infirmary. Just in case, to make sure Wendy could treat them if their wounds were worse than they had thought.

The great hall of the guild had been abandoned save for two people. The Master sat on the bar at his usual place, while the water demon sat in a chair not far away from him. They were discussing the situation and the next course of action. The lights had been dimmed and the moonlight illuminated the corners where the light couldn't reach.

"I never thought I'd see the day when the world would be close to the apocalypse." Makarov was old but he was sure the world would still be there when he was long gone.

"The situation is even worse than you think. We do not know when the seal will break and Zeref has many followers, who are loyal to him even after all those centuries. They will try to get in the way."

That was to be expected. But it didn't make the situation any better. Erza knew these fanatics all to well. She had to endure their torture when she was just a small girl. Having lost everything and not even knowing who she was and where she came from.

"How much do they know?"

"Luck is on our side for the time being. They know almost nothing. But they certainly will try to move heaven and earth to find out. If they find out that Fairy Tail is Abaddon's ally, there will be hell to pay."

Makarov's frown deepened when he heard that. He didn't want any of his guild members dealing with these people, much less let Erza experience it all over again.

"So, why does Abaddon need all of you to be present? Isn't one demon enough to stop them?"

Yuga sighed and crossed his legs and his arms as well, clearly uncomfortable with the question.

"If it was only the humans, I could deal with them alone. But since we know almost nothing about this seal, there is a high possibility for this shadow to break free. And then, things will be ...complicated, to say the least. Abaddon thought that the best would be to have our group complete before this could happen."

The Master had to give Abaddon credit for thinking so far ahead.

"So how do we proceed? I can imagine you thought of one or two things already?"

Yuga looked down in deep thought.

"...No, not really. I have not had the chance to get to know your guild and time is running out." He answered.

That was true. Yuga didn't really know the mages of Fairy Tail or which kind of magic they used.

"Good then tell me what you need and we go from there. What about that earth demon? Who and where is he?"

"His name is Suga. You could say he is our leader and if we really want to win this war, we will need him badly. I have not seen him for a few years and when Abaddon called us all, he did not answer. Which is unusual for him. While Yuu was out to find your guild, I looked under every rock in the Underworld. I think, I have found him at last, but it seems like he locked himself up like an immature adolescent. He put a seal there and since Suga is older and stronger than I, I cannot break it. I have no idea if he is hurt, alive, sleeping or really there at all."

"Hmmm, so I will definitely send Wendy and Carla on that mission, but I don't want them to go alone into the Underworld."

Yuga couldn't take to sit in that hard, wooden chair anymore and stood up smoothly.

"I will go as well. Just one question. I have seen a certain key on Lucy. Does she have a contract with Virgo?"

Makarov didn't even have to think about it.

"Yes she has, why?"

The water demon started pacing with slow and fluent steps, like a tiger in a cage.

"Virgo can dig a tunnel under the seal. If I cannot break it from the outside, someone else has to break it from the inside."

While Yuga walked from one side to the other and back, the old man pulled out his pipe. A smoke was long overdue. Ok, the guild members didn't like this habit of his and since he was old, they would always remind him of his health. But really, there weren't many things an old man could enjoy.

"And what about that Thunder Demon?" He asked before he lit up the tobacco in his pipe.

The dark haired man snorted disdainfully, before he stopped and looked over his shoulder at Makarov.

"If I had my way, I would leave him where he is. However, since Abaddon ordered his retrieval, there has to be something useful about him."

That didn't sound like he liked or respected the thunder demon. Well, everyone had disputes, even in a guild. The best example were Fairy Tail's resident brawlers, Natsu and Gray.

Just right in that moment a purple glow flew through an open window before the glow popped and Yuu flew towards the water demon.

"Master Yuga, Master Yuga. Yuu learned new spell. Is really useful..." She started to babble loudly.

Yuga held a finger to his lips.

"Not so loud, you do not want to wake everyone up, do you? Gray and Lucy need rest, they are hurt." He reminded her with a gentle voice.

The small messenger clapped her hands on her mouth, even though it was too late to be quiet already. She flew towards Yuga and landed on his shoulder.

"But new spell important..." She insisted and sat down.

"This is also important Yuu. But I promise you can tell me everything about it tomorrow, alright?"

Yuu didn't even look disappointed and nodded eagerly with sparkling eyes. She was just glad that the water demon would spend some time with her at all.

Makarov saw a new side on the demon in front of him. He had seen Yuga being polite, cynic and serious maybe also a bit menacing. Being gentle and friendly with the small messenger was something he hadn't expected.

Yuga's features lit up a bit, like he'd remembered something important.

"Say Yuu. Would you be able to track the idiot down?" He asked.

The messenger knew exactly whom he meant.

"Yuu can do that, but Sparky must be close."

"If you take the portal to Cocolua island, you should be close enough. The island is rather small."

Yuu stood up and flew in front of her master. She had a determined face and her hands balled to small fists.

"Yuu can do it! Trust Yuu, Master Yuga."

"Good and whatever it takes to drag him here, ...do it!" He gave her a amused smirk, indicating she could fight dirty if she wanted to.

The master took a last drag from his pipe before he emptied the burnt tobacco into a nearby ashtray.

"I guess Yuu..." Makarov pointed at the not-Pixie. "...wants someone to protect her."

The little creature was about to protest, but her master had the last word.

" 'I' want someone to protect her while I am absent. And if anything happens to her, ..." Yuga left the rest for the master to imagine what he meant.

"I see, then I'll send Gray and Natsu with her. ...On the other hand, they will fight constantly. I'll need someone to keep them in line, too bad Erza is not here right now. ...Oh well, ...I guess, I'll send Juvia with them."

This time, Makarov caught the twitch in Yuga's frame. He was sure it had something to do with Juvia. The water demon looked like he'd seen a ghost when she had rushed to Gray's side. However, it was not his place to ask Yuga such private questions. If he felt like telling anything at all, he would.

Yuga pulled himself together rather quickly.

"Last would be the temple on Galuna Island. I need someone who is clever and experienced with ancient languages."

"I think that will be no problem at all. Levy is the smartest in the guild. She can handle it and her team will accompany her. "

The dark haired man walked to a cushioned bench, which was more to his liking, and sat down. Yuu decided that the day had been too long for her. She landed on a pillow, curled up and closed her eyes. It didn't take long and before anyone could count to three, she was fast asleep next to her master on the bench.

Yuga watched the whole display out of the corner of his eye with a soft, almost nonexistent smile.

"Perhaps it would be a good idea to send someone else with her team. If those followers made any progress, they will be on Galuna Island." Yuga said in a hushed voice, trying to be as quiet as possible to let Yuu sleep.

The old man rested his head in his palm.

"If Erza comes back in time I'll send her with them. If not, ...I have to see who is available. For the moment we have three teams. I'll send out the rest for information gathering. Just take good care of Wendy and Lucy, if anything happens to them..." Makarov quoted Yuga's own words.

The demon held up his hands in surrender.

"We promise thou, Master of Fairy Tail, thy children are save with us." He replied in the same old fashioned way he'd greeted the master first.

The master sighed heavily.

"I count on that Yuga. Hard times are ahead of us. We can't lose anyone."

~o~o~o~

The next morning came much too soon. Not many of the guild members had a good night sleep. They gathered in the main hall to listen to their master's decision. Lucy had been present for a half an hour already. She let Gray sleep since his wounds had been much worse than hers. Wendy said he would be fine when he'd wake up, but that didn't mean he didn't need as much rest as he could get.

She was worried, not only for him, for everyone. The world was in grave danger and failure was no option! This time, she had to fight. Fight to prove that she could protect others as well. She wasn't helpless! Or she hoped she wasn't. Makarov stood on the bar surface so that everyone could see him. Even so, many in the background had problems seeing the short Master.

The hall was so quiet, one didn't have to strain to hear a pin drop. Some of them even held their breath when their master began to speak.

"As you all know, things have changed in the last few hours. And not even the Lord of the Underworld is able to prevent this. This time there won't be one single team to save us all. This time, everyone has to do their best. Nobody is weak or replaceable. Every single one of you is a capable member of this guild."

The Master's voice was filled with pride and trust. Many had joined the guild at a very young age. He had taken them in, taught them right from wrong and raised them into strong mages. Now was their time to show what they had learned.

Yuga stood next to him, listening to every word and not daring to interfere. His self-proclaimed servant Yuu floated in the air right next to him. She was too excited to land somewhere or rest.

While the master talked to his guild, Gray stumbled down the stairs with a fretting Juvia on his heels. He appreciated her worry, but she was overdoing it. He needed to get away from her, quickly! He wasn't helpless and Wendy's magic worked wonders. Wounds which would take at least two weeks to heal took merely a few hours.

"Ah Gray, right in time. I was about to divide the teams." Makarov said.

_'Good, now I can get some peace and quiet.'_ Gray also hoped to get a chance to talk to Lucy and apologize for his irrational behavior.

The Master turned his gaze to the first team.

"Levy, you and your team will go to the temple on Galuna island. Try to find out what is hidden inside. Symbols, Drawings, Hieroglyphs, anything! See if you'll find out anything about a temple in the desert."

Team Shadow Gear was up and ready to go. Makarov pointed to each one of the second team before pointing at his Guest.

"Wendy, Carla and Lucy will go with Yuga to help with the Earth Demon."

Gray certainly didn't like the lack of his name in that sentence. So ok, Yuga was almost alone with Lucy, big deal. He could handle that. Yes he could!

Juvia noticed Gray's clenched fists, even if her crush had no idea of what he was doing. The jealousy was so evident in his eyes, she wondered if Lucy was perhaps blind not to notice it. Well, time to put some oil into the fire.

"Juvia doesn't think that Lucy seems to mind. She looks rather happy."

She had to be careful. One wrong word could direct Gray's anger towards her. Lucy was happy, but the water mage could also see that the blond wasn't looking at the demon. Perhaps she was just happy to be assigned to an important mission.

However it had the desired effect on the ice alchemist. His resolve and anger wavered for a moment. A few more blows like this and Juvia was sure she could convince him that she was the better choice.

Gray stepped up to the Master, wanting to hear what his mission could be. If he had any mission at all, or if the old man thought it better for him to rest some more. It couldn't get worse now.

"Gray, Natsu, Happy and Juvia. You will go with Yuu to Cocolua island. Try to find that Thunder Demon!"

Gray stood there with his mouth hanging wide open. He had been so wrong. It certainly could get worse!

"The rest will should try to find some hints here and in other towns. Every single hint could help. Also keep an eye open for Zeref's own cult. His followers are out there somewhere. Go now, but be careful, we don't need these fanatics to know what we are up to."

With that the meeting was over. Yuga talked one last time to Yuu. Then he let the ladies of his team go through the great doors of the guild first, before following them. The little messenger looked sadly after her master before she flew towards Natsu and Happy.

"Yuu alone now." She sniffled.

Being small enough Happy patted Yuu on her head without hurting her.

"You are not alone, right Natsu?"

"Of course not, partner. We are a team. That means Yuu belongs with us now."

"AYE!"

It made Yuu feel a little better. She wiped the oncoming tears away.

Gray thought he was about to faint. Being in a team with Natsu and Erza was difficult enough. But being in a team with Natsu and 'Juvia' was something he was not looking forward to. Someone in this universe must hate him. He was sure of that.

"What now?" Natsu asked.

Yuu flew up and settled on the top of Natsu's head. Normally this was Happy's place, but he liked Yuu so he didn't mind. The messenger was surprised how soft Natsu's spiky hair was. No wonder the blue tomcat liked to sit there.

"Everyone ready?" She asked.

Juvia had everything she needed with her since she stayed in the girls dorm of the guild. Natsu was ready since last night and Gray, ...well he wouldn't ever be ready for this mission, but he really had no say in this. Gray went up the stairs grabbed a few things and a new shirt, since he somehow had lost his own on his way upstairs.

When he returned his team was waiting by the door already. All of them looked forward to new adventures. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad. If he just could forget about Lucy and Yuga.

~o~o~o~

The water demon led his team to the river which ran it's way through Magnolia and past the guild.

"Don't tell me you expect us to jump into the river" Lucy half joked.

The water demon smirked slightly.

"Of course not. How could I?" He lifted his right hand and drew something quickly in the air with his index finger.

The river stopped flowing and lifted itself out of the channel. It formed some kind of symbol in the air which grew larger by the second. Wendy and Lucy could see something behind the symbol and it certainly wasn't Magnolia anymore. Suddenly the symbol parted and the water created a huge gate and behind it was a place covered by mist. Or at least it looked like that.

With a small wave the water demon created a small ice bridge, leading from the edge of the channel to the gate. He stepped up to the gate and when he stood on the makeshift bridge he held out his hand to Wendy.

"May I help you, small Lady?" He asked politely.

Wendy blushed a bit in embarrassment at being called a 'Lady' instead of a girl. She took his waiting hand and crossed the small space between their world and the world behind the mist.

"Thank you." She replied politely.

Carla used her wings and flew after her protégé through the gate. Last was Lucy. The Stellar Mage was afraid and it clearly showed in her face.

"What is it my Lady? Terror of the unknown?" Yuga asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.

Lucy could only nod. She had heard stories about the Underworld from her nanny and her teacher. She didn't know if they were true, but those stories were enough to shake up her courage.

_'Pull yourself together, Lucy!'_ She chided herself.

She took Yuga's outstretched hand, but he held her back before she could step into the mist.

"I am not the unknown, ...neither is this place." The demon replied in a calm voice while looking into her brown eyes.

With that Yuga took the last step as well and pulled her into the mist with him. Lucy had closed her eyes in fear, but when she opened them it looked like she stood in the middle of the universe. Wendy stood not far away from her and admired the glowing lights that symbolized the stars.

"Surprised?" Yuga asked and let go of her hand.

Lucy whirled around just in time to see that the gate they went through was closing up. The stars flowed into it's rightful places when the gate vanished, as if the thin sheet of this universe hadn't been torn a moment ago by the water demon.

The four of them stood in the middle of the open space. No ground, no walls, no ceiling. Nothingness, ...and yet existence at the same time.

"Where are we?" Lucy asked in awe.

Yuga had walked a few steps ahead. Then he turned around and spread out his arms.

"This? It is all and nothing. Alpha and omega. Birth and death. ...Welcome to the Underworld!"

~o~o~o~

tbc.


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** I'm getting tired of this. Fairy Tail is a amazing Manga and Anime, sadly it does not belong to me. *sigh*

**Author's note:** Many corrections done here and further chapters and I also had to rewrite a bit of the plot, but nothing great. You won't notice.

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 5**  
by Misty Mina

It didn't take long for Levy and her team to reach the harbor. Hopefully someone would be willing to bring them to Galuna Island. The sailors still clung to the rumor of the cursed island. For them, the inhabitants alone were proof enough and nobody would bother to listen to reason.

Jet and Droy were suspicious of every person they came across. Because every single one of them could be a member of Zeref's fanclub. They couldn't be careless or their precious Levy-chan might get hurt.

Levy just rolled her eyes at their paranoia. Sure they meant well, but she was a big girl and could take care of herself. Both were her friends and definitely only her friends. As much as they would like, she didn't feel anything for them besides friendship.

It was highly illogical, she knew that, but she believed in true love. In her eyes, love meant not to worship the other or to act all lovey dovey like those two did. For her it meant to need the other in every way. Their good and their bad sides. Their learned manners as well as their bad habits. To accept and be accepted. Need and be needed.

But maybe her thought of love was wrong, ...seeing as she was still single and had yet to have her first real boyfriend. Ok, she had dates and she had kissed them but nothing more. And since she hated to lie to herself and others, Levy broke it off before it could form into a relationship. They were fine boys, but she didn't feel those butterflies in her stomach, her heart beating like crazy or any of those things everyone was talking about when they described it.

The only time she felt those things were because of fear.

Fear of Gajeel

At least that's what she thought when she had first met him and even after he'd joined Fairy Tail. But he had proven himself worthy to be a member of the guild, yet she still felt those things.

Levy assumed she was still afraid, but what for? That he would attack them again? Very unlikely. If so, he would have done so already. Or maybe that he would suddenly turn around and join the next dark guild? She always wondered about that. One question had occupied her mind for days.

If Gajeel was so evil like everyone claimed he was, ...then why hadn't he joined a dark guild? With his reputation and power, any dark guild would have welcomed him with open arms. And he certainly had no problem with killing. So why?

Her only answer and firm believe was, that the Dragon Slayer made himself worse than he really was. His real self was a gem, hidden inside a mountain. You'd have to dig deep to catch a glimpse of that valuable gem and until now, no one had.

Levy shook herself out of her musings. It was no use to think about that. It was not like they were on speaking terms. The occasional greeting and a quick glance, that was all. It was like he was avoiding her.

Speaking of the devil.

There he was, leaving a boat before it could dock into the harbor and walking into their direction. Levy felt those signs again. The signs of her fear. She gulped before talking to him.

"H-Hi Gajeel, ..how was your..." She started.

But before she could finish the sentence he'd walked past her and her team. Not even acknowledging their presence. Of course Jet and Droy wouldn't let that pass.

"Hey you metal-headed jerk, Levy was talking to you!"

"Yeah, you should listen to what she has to say!"

The Dragon Slayer turned around to see who was stupid enough to insult him. But when he saw Team Shadow Gear, he merely snorted and turned around to continue his way back to the guild, not even giving them the time of day.

"The nerve of him..." Jet seethed.

Levy looked down, finding her shoes very interesting at the very moment. There he went again. Avoiding her and her team. Not even saying hello or anything. She was still afraid of him, she should be glad that she wasn't his target any longer.

So... then why did it hurt when he ignored her?

~o~o~o~

Gajeel didn't look back or justify his actions. He couldn't since _'he'_ was listening. He had to reach the guild, quickly. Because the world was going downhill.

The Dragon Slayer walked through Magnolia, ignoring everyone on the street. When he finally reached the building, he noticed how quiet the atmosphere was. Normally there would be a fight going on by midday. Either there weren't many people in the guild, or they had already heard the news. He hoped it was the first.

Walking through the door, he saw only a few members sitting around and going through some books. Elfman reading was certainly something he hadn't seen before. Mirajane approached him, but when she opened her mouth to talk to him, he cut her off.

"Save it! I don't wanna hear it." He snarled. That earned him a few rude remarks and a furious glance from Elfman. Nothing unusual.

The Master was most likely upstairs. Not wasting another minute Gajeel walked briskly away. He was right, the Master was sitting on a desk reading an ancient book. He turned around in his chair when he noticed Gajeel.

"Gajeel, you're back already? I didn't expect you so soon. How was your mission?" He asked.

Gajeel held his finger to his lips, signaling him to be silent.

"The mission was kiddy stuff. ...I don't even know why you sent me there, in the middle of nowhere." While Gajeel said those things loud and clearly he gave the master a slip of paper.

Makarov knew that his newest member was acting so he played along.

"I thought it would be good for you. You might be powerful, but you still lack control." He answered while unfolding the paper.

"Tsk, lacking control my ass! I could do every S-class mission! Blindfolded! ...I bet, I could even kick Titania's armored butt! But you keep me on a leash like a rabid dog. What does it take to show you that I'm better than that fire-fool you keep around?"

While Gajeel was buying some time, Makarov read the paper. The words were scribbled in a hurry that much he could tell.

_'Ivan attached a paper doll on me, but it will fall apart in a few hours. For now you should be careful. He cannot see us, but he is listening in. His guild Raven Tail and the assassin guild Skull Order are working together for a client. They're looking for something in the depths of the ocean...'_

But what really drained the old man's face of all color was the last sentence.

_' They have Laxus'_

Makarov set the paper aflame and threw it to the ground were it was reduced to ashes. This was bad news indeed. He had set Gajeel on his miserable son Ivan as a spy. The Dragon Slayer would always report to him, never once wasting a thought on betrayal. Until now, Ivan had been small fry. Nobody to be concerned about.

But he would be dangerous with Skull Order at his side. He was sure that Gajeel knew more than he could say. Removing the doll would alert Ivan. It would mean that either his supposed-to-be spy Gajeel had been exposed or that he'd been betrayed by the Iron user. None of these options were really beneficial for Fairy Tail.

Continuing the act until the spell on the paper doll would wear off was the only option they had.

"Watch your mouth Gajeel! The Council considers Erza worthy of being a sage! A title which is far out of reach for you."

The Dragon Slayer shrugged.

"Tch whatever old man, not like I want to be one. Next time you better have a real mission for me."

"That's enough! The request board is almost empty! Everyone is out doing minor missions and you will have to do that as well if you want to earn some money. Now go home and rest!"

"Hmmpf. I do what I want! Got that?" Gajeel kept the act up and left the guild quickly.

Things got even more complicated now. Laxus wasn't a member of the guild anymore. However the master wouldn't forsake his own grandson. Makarov had to do something, but with Abaddon's request on their hands that was no easy task. Maybe it would be wise to ask for help. He had to ask Yuga about this. All the master could do was to wait for Ivan's spell to wear of and ask Gajeel what else he could tell him. Every little detail might be important.

~o~o~o~

After leaving the guild, Natsu's team followed the little Messenger into the forest. Yuu flew in front of them while humming cheerfully. She had been sad when her Master had left her alone once more, but now she was happy. Happy to be entrusted with an important mission again.

Juvia had noticed that her love had been moody since they left the guild, but she didn't know why. He was the first to leave the building. Maybe he was uneasy about their mission? Or was this about Lucy again?

She didn't know how close she was to the truth. Gray was moody for a reason. His thoughts were running with the image he had seen when he stood in the doorway of the guild. How Lucy accepted Yuga's help to enter that portal and how that bastard held her back for a second. The ice mage stood too far away to hear what they were talking about. But he was dying to know!

Gray was seething inside. What was so great about that good-for-nothing demon anyway? He was a liar, a lazy bum, he had no sense of direction and worst of all, he looked like a girl! But as much as he was angry at Yuga, he felt uneasy as well when he thought of Lucy and Wendy walking through that world.

Underworld, a place shrouded in legends and none of them with a happy end.

"Hey Yuu!" Gray started

"Yes?"

"What is the Underworld like?"

Gray had been worried for a while now. Lucy was down there, practically on her own, with a demon. A pretty demon at that. But what if there were many more? Maybe not so pretty, but still dangerous.

"Hmmm..." Yuu didn't know how to describe it to a human.

She was silent for a moment and Gray assumed she had already forgotten what he had asked.

"Yuu?"

"Underworld is..." She stopped midair.

Everyone stopped as well, eagerly listening to the little creature.

"Home!" She finally answered with a shrug.

The whole group almost face planted. Exasperated, Gray tried again.

"No, what I meant was, could you describe it? Is it a very dangerous place? Are there more demons? Bigger versions maybe?"

Juvia knew exactly what Gray was trying to ask with his evasive questions. The real question was: 'Is Lucy save there?' Yuu turned to the ice mage, not really sure what to say. She wasn't nearly as eloquent as her Master.

"Home is ...big and...Lord Abaddon rules! ...Is also home of demons, Underworld messengers and souls."

"Souls?" Natsu repeated.

The group was at a loss for a second. Seeing their puzzled faces, Yuu started to explain it to them.

"Uh huh, ...Lord Abaddon, Judge. Judging all souls! Souls go Heaven, Hell or Mu."

"Mooh? ...They go to a farm? I don't understand that!" Natsu knew what heaven or hell meant, but had never heard of anything else.

"They become cows!" Happy concluded.

"This has nothing to do with cows!" Gray had heard the term before.

"If Happy says that, then I agree. Something against that, Streaker?"

"Actually yes, because it's wrong, Firehead!"

"Perverted Punk!"

"Asshole!"

"Bastard!"

And the fight was on, but not for long. Juvia had exclusive orders from the master to separate them when those two started to fight. It was an order she was not really happy about, since it included that she had to treat those two equally. Well she had to do something or those two wouldn't stop.

_'Forgive me, Gray-sama.'_

Juvia used her magic and formed a water sphere above them. Then she let it drop without warning, drenching them to the bone.

Yuu had watched the show with interest. It had looked quite familiar to her.

"Juvia t - thinks Mu m - means the 'Nothingness'." The water maiden tried to look down, but the wet shirt still clinging to Gray's body made that impossible.

Natsu lay sprawled on the ground coughing up some water while Gray got rid of his white shirt. Really, who wants to run around with wet clothes?

The little messenger nodded.

"Souls go Mu when Hell too good and then..."

"Then?" Everyone asked.

"They go 'poof'." She exaggerated by raising her tiny arms as if she was talking about an explosion.

"They ...vanish? Just like that? I thought souls were immortal?" Gray asked.

"They are immortal? I didn't know that. Hey, that's means I'm immortal!" Natsu grinned from ear to ear.

Gray couldn't take the fire mage's babbling any more and punched his arm.

"Idiot! Not you are immortal, your soul is, ...well I thought it was."

Yuu shook her head, making her pigtails fly with the movement.

"No! Soul immortal! But must stay out of Mu. In Mu, 'everything' goes poof! Souls, humans, demons, gods, ...everything!" She explained while waving her arms.

It took a few moments to get what Yuu tried to say in her childlike way, but soon everyone got a faint idea what this place was. Even Natsu got it.

Mu was Nothingness. It was a place where everything, solid or not, fell apart and ceased to exist. Never to grace this world or the universe ever again.

The little Not-Pixie continued flying towards their destination, thinking the mages will follow her. When she turned around they were still in their musings.

"Hurry, Hurry, must find portal!" She called impatiently.

"Yuu, ...Juvia has a question." The water mage started.

"Yeah?" Yuu wasn't sure what to expect, the group got unusually silent.

"You said Abaddon judges souls. ...Does that make him god? ...The 'God' ?"

It was a question Natsu and Gray had asked themselves as well.

Yuu tried to understand what exactly Juvia meant. Then she remembered that her master had said something about the humans and their believe in one god.

Shrugging she replied: "Yuu only met Lord Abaddon, ...but he not alone."

"There is more than one god?" Gray asked with wide eyes.

Yuu nodded eagerly then beckoned the group to follow her again, before they could ask more questions. Yuu didn't understand the details of the divine hierarchy herself, she knew only a few facts.

Mutely the mages started to follow her again everyone lost in their own thoughts. Things had changed so drastically. Two days ago, the world had been fine. A few hours ago, they thought god would protect them through their mission. Now the world was in danger and they didn't know which god would hear their prayers or if one was listening to them at all.

~o~o~o~

It had been almost a week since Erza Scarlet had accepted that S-class mission. The mission itself didn't sound so hard, it was the effort behind it that made it S-class. The daughter of a rich and politically active family had been kidnapped by a dark guild. They didn't even demand a ransom, which meant that perhaps someone with political influence had hired that guild. Her mission was to retrieve the girl without the dark guild noticing and to find out who hired them.

First she had to spy on them and luckily for her, their client soon showed up on their doorstep. It was the uncle of the girl. He was her father's brother and wanted his position. So he hired those rogue mages to abduct his niece. And while her father would be busy with her rescue, he would spread rumors of his brother to others and even the council, inevitably ruining the man's good image and allow himself to be in the council's good graces.

There was going to be an event soon where Erza's own client was expected. She told him to act as if nothing happened and leave the rest to her.

Soon enough she had freed the girl and brought her back home before anyone at the dark guild had noticed. Her client was so thankful to have his only child back that he invited her to stay a while in his mansion and rest from the mission. Erza accepted and had stayed overnight.

The mansion was huge and the rooms were decorated with expensive furniture, worthy for a King or a Queen. She instantly loved the place and swore if she ever had her own apartment or even house, she'd furnish it in the same way.

The bed was soft and comfy, but her sleep was not really what one would call peaceful.

Those dreams were haunting her again.

Many would believe it were dreams of failed missions, of loss and grieve and yet, it was none of those things. It didn't change the fact that she was sad in the morning though. The images were blurry and she couldn't really remember what she had dreamt of. She could only make out two blurry persons. One of them more in red the other more in white.

She had told the Master what she had been dreaming of from time to time. His guess was that those were fragments of her forgotten past and, maybe, one day she would remember it clearly.

Erza came to Fairy Tail as runaway slave and now she was an S-class mage. However both of these times had one thing in common. She was still without a heritage. No surname, no birthplace and no parents. Whenever she looked into a mirror, she asked herself who she really was. The mirror couldn't answer her and there were no leads either. Except her first name, the only thing she could remember when she woke up as a slave.

And yet, nobody missed a redhaired girl. Nobody looked for a child named Erza.

But maybe these shadows in her dreams could answer her. Maybe these were her parents? Maybe these were forgotten friends who could tell her what had happened.

Perhaps Erza Scarlet hadn't cried for a long time. But little Erza was still crying. Every day. Every night. For her parents to pick her up and take her home.

~o~o~o~

"So, how does she do it?" Lucy asked, exasperated at the fact that Wendy imitated Carla and started floating.

The small Dragon Slayer had too much fun floating among the stars to pay attention to the stellar mage. Yuga on the other hand stood like he would in a normal room with a floor.

"Because she wanted to fly." He answered shortly.

Lucy looked more puzzled than before.

"Just like that?"

"Yes, just like that." He repeated patiently.

The blonde imagined how she would fly but her body wouldn't move. Sighing at her failure she tried walking to catch up with her new team, which worked just fine.

"Somehow this doesn't work for me. ...Is this really the Underworld? I didn't think it would look like this."

"Disappointed?" Yuga teased.

Wendy flew back and came to a stop right in front of them.

"Did you see that Lucy? I wished I could fly through this universe like Carla and now I do!" She babbled.

The white cat still tried to understand what was going on. Finally she had enough of trying to figure this out by herself. She looked directly at the demon.

"I thought the Underworld was something like a dank cave and not a starry sky. So what is going on here?" She asked impatiently while wrinkling her small nose.

The water demon smirked slightly before walking to the side to have some space. Then he held out his hand. The air started to flicker before something materialized in the demons hand. It was a glowing Lachryma shaped like Carla with spread wings. Before they knew what to think of it, the figurine disappeared again right in front of their eyes.

"The Underworld is not a cave nor a world underground. That is a cliché human cultures came up with throughout the centuries. The truth is, it is another dimension!" He explained.

Carla concluded quickly what that meant.

"A dimension like Exquip mages would rely on to store their weapons and equipment!"

"Right! Except they cannot use this dimension. Exquip mages can control small dimension for storage. But the Underworld is too large to control."

"And why can I fly?" Wendy asked innocently.

"Because you want to!" He repeated.

Wendy tilted her head in confusion to the side.

"That doesn't make any sense."

"It does. In this dimension, your will and power are law! It enables you to move mountains. As a Dragon Slayer, you have enough power and you seem to have a strong will as well."

That got Lucy thinking. She had more than half of the twelve golden keys, which made her a powerful Stellar mage. Yet she couldn't fly. Was she so weak willed? So irresolute? The longer she thought about it, the more she doubted herself.

The Sky Dragon Slayer started blushing again. Nobody had ever complimented her so much. She wasn't used to that. But she had to admit it felt good to be praised for her ability.

Carla had noticed something else as well when they went through the portal. They were alone.

"Are there other creatures as well? Like those messengers?" She asked.

Yuga started walking in a slow pace while still talking to his new comrades. The others followed without being asked to.

"Yes, but at the moment we are in the outer circle of the Underworld. Most of the messengers are in the inner circle where Lord Abaddon resides and issues his orders. There are not many other demons at the moment. Some live in the human world, some were sealed away, some were destroyed and a few had been abducted by Zeref."

Lucy had stopped walking.

"Abducted? By Zeref? How? I know he had been powerful, but not that much. Was that also part of his 'living magic'?"

Yuga stopped as well. He snorted at the comment.

"'Living magic'. That is what 'he' called his ability. All he did was breach into the outer circle and take a few of the weaker demons with him. Some followed on their own will, others had no choice. In the end he fused a few demons with powerful objects. And voilà! It was living magic. The best example is the lullaby! A demon and a death flute! Fuse them together and you have a living weapon."

It was a plausible explanation, better than what most mages of the world suspected. The Fairy Tail mages listened with wide eyes, not really believing what they had heard.

Yuga turned on his heal and started walking briskly away. His mood had turned from being amused to sour in the blink of an eye. It was something the water demon was known for in the Underworld. His severe mood swings. It didn't take long for the females to catch on. They followed him mutely, not really daring to say anything. But his annoyance vanished as quickly as it had come when the universe around them started to blur with every step the group took.

"What now?" Carla asked. She was concerned for Wendy's well-being. Maybe one of the other demons were around and out to get them.

"We are almost there." He answered, still walking.

The stars started to disappear but the light didn't. It merely dimmed to the point when one could barely see where they were going. The universe shifted and formed shapes around them. The space became smaller and the shapes petrified. The mages watched in wonder when the starry sky crumbled. It made way for something Carla had mentioned earlier. A dank, dark cave.

Wendy yelped when she felt how gravity pulled on her body.

"WENDY!" But Carla had noticed her fall too late.

The small Dragon Slayer had her eyes closed in fright and expected a hard landing. Luckily Yuga caught her when she fell. Wendy opened her eyes slowly when she didn't feel the hard ground. Looking up she saw Yuga's dark indigo eyes which left her speechless.

"...You are welcome, small Lady." It never failed to amuse the water demon how easily humans could be distracted. Blushing hard she tried to come up with an appropriate answer.

"T - T - Thank you." She stuttered when Yuga let her down.

Carla was relieved to see that her protégé was saved, but also annoyed that this happened in the first place. Landing besides Wendy she pointed a white paw at Yuga.

"What happened?" The feline didn't ask, she demanded to know.

"The laws have changed. We were in a neutral place before, but now we are in Suga's territory."

"Suga?" Lucy asked.

"My bad, I forgot to introduce our patient properly. Suga is the Earth Demon and he is making the rules here. In his territory. If a creature is powerful enough, they can claim parts of the Underworld as their own. That is why our small Lady fell."

The mages looked around, trying to find out which way to go.

"Does that mean you live in a cave too?" Wendy asked with childish curiosity.

"Heaven forbid! No, I prefer luxury. A cave is by no means comfortable! Suga on the other hand ...formed this part of the Underworld to his liking. How someone could actually want to live in a cave is completely beyond me."

Something began to dawn on Lucy. The way Yuga held himself, his eloquent speech and his preference for luxury. She had seen those habits before and was raised to behave in the same way when she was among those people. Now everything made sense.

"Yuga..., " Lucy started

The addressed demon turned towards her. Even now the blonde could see the grace in that simple movement.

"...Are you an aristocrat?"

For a moment Yuga seemed to be shocked but camouflaged his features in a matter of seconds.

"A Noble? ...In the Underworld? ...Unthinkable!" He replied with a straight face and a calm voice, almost mocking her for the mere idea.

_'But not impossible!'_ She thought. Yuga was trying to hide something, but his body language and etiquette were betraying him.

Wendy pulled at Lucy's skirt to get her attention.

"Lucy, what is an ari... aris..." She tried to say the same word but couldn't remember the exact pronunciation.

"An aristocrat. " The stellar mage helped out.

"It's a person who has the manners or qualities of a member of a privileged or superior class. They are the only ones who a King or a Queen would socialize with." The stellar mage tried to explain it in an easy way for Wendy since she was still a child.

It was not hard for Wendy to see what Lucy meant. She had read many tales about Kings, Queens, Princes and Princesses. That Princes held a ball to find a suitable bride and that only nobles were aloud to attend it. It was not hard for her to imagine Yuga being on such a ball.

While they were talking, Yuga had gone ahead. It didn't take long for him to reach the end of the cave. It was a dead end made of stones which had fallen from the ceiling. The girls noticed soon enough that their guide was gone and went the same direction which the demon took. Soon all of them stood in front of the rocks which blocked their path.

"Maybe we should go back and try the other way." The blonde suggested.

Yuga stepped in front of the fallen rocks and tried to lay a hand on the rough surface. Suddenly a green light illuminated the spot where the demon tried to touch and he drew his hand back as if it had been burned.

"No, we are in front of the entrance. To make a long tale short, Suga is probably behind this wall. The messengers told me that he had locked himself in and put a seal on those rocks from the inside. Even if I would dig a tunnel under the seal, it would still stop me, ...but not you. This seal is made for demons only. Suga did not think of humans or mages. Now I need your help Lucy."

Understanding the hint, Lucy chose the right key for the task.

"Open! A door to the Virgin! Virgo!"

The maid heeded her call and a second later Virgo stood in front of her

"How may I help you, Princess?" She took a bow to greet her owner.

"Virgo, you have to dig a tunnel from here to the other side of that wall. Can you do that?" Lucy pointed to the dead end.

"Certainly, Princess."

As soon as she had said it, Virgo dove into the ground. Yuga chuckled slightly while shaking his head.

"And you call me an aristocrat, ...princess." It seemed like the demon was in a good mood again.

Before Lucy could think of a good answer Virgo stuck her head out of the hole she had created.

"All done, princess."

"Already? That was fast, thank you Virgo." If Lucy could count on anything, it was on her stellar spirit maid.

"You wish to punish me?" The spirit asked innocently.

She could also count on the fact that her maid would always ask if she would be punished.

"...Uhm no Virgo, I was thanking you. You did a good job."

"Is there anything else you need, Princess?"

"No, that was all."

"Understood! Good luck, Princess and be careful! There is a powerful demon on the other side." The stellar spirit didn't know that they actually wanted to find said demon.

The blonde chose to forgo a reply. There was no use to tell her the whole story.

"Good, now we know that Suga is really there. Thanks to the barrier I can not even sense him. Now listen! Use the tunnel and when you reach the other side, look for a symbol and destroy it. Something like a rune or a drawing. Do NOT go any further than that. Wait for me! Suga has never seen you before, he might consider you a threat." Yuga instructed.

Wendy entered the tunnel with Carla 's help, looking like she wasn't afraid at all. Lucy on the other hand thought of the worst scenarios and with a gulp she climbed down as well. Without a light source the tunnel was pitch-black and the girls couldn't even see their own hands before their eyes. The only thing they could do was to feel their way through the tunnel.

When they reached the end, Carla flew upwards to make sure the coast was clear. Being unaware of possible threats could endanger Wendy's life. She wouldn't allow that to happen!

Since she couldn't see or sense anything dangerous, the feline deemed it safe enough for the girls. She went back into the tunnel and lifted her protégé to the surface. It wasn't as dark as the tunnel, but there was no visible light source either. The Sky Dragon Slayer looked around, yet she couldn't find a symbol or a rune.

While Wendy searched on the walls for possible signs, Carla helped Lucy upwards as well. Landing on the ground Lucy noticed something in the corner of her eye. There were a few stones in a strange array. Perhaps it was the sign they were looking for.

_'Only one way to find out.'_ She thought.

The stellar mage took one stone out of the symbol and threw it far away. Suddenly the broken symbol started glowing in the same light like when the water demon had touched the barrier. Then it died down to a flicker and the remaining stones fell apart on their own.

"You did it Lucy!" Wendy shouted out.

The blonde wasn't really all too happy about this. Now that the seal had been broken, it would certainly alert the one who put it up in the first place. Ready to use her keys if necessary, she looked around. She expected to see an angered person, maybe a frightening monster or at least glowing eyes in the dark. However she didn't see any of these things. Maybe Virgo was wrong. The fact that nothing happened at all worried her the most.

"My regards Ladies, you did well." Yuga materialized besides Lucy.

Lucy let out a startled yelp before she realized it was just the other demon.

"Phew, you startled me. Did you just turn your body to water?" Lucy asked.

To prove her right Yuga liquefied his right arm and materialized it again.

"Being a water demon, this is a given."

Carla had looked around the cave with her sharp eyes, but even she failed to see said earth demon.

"I can't see anyone! Where is he?"

The water demon walked up to a pile of rubble. When he stood he looked up to the ceiling only to see that it had changed since the last time he'd been there. Now that he actually took the time to look, he noticed different things. The cave seemed larger than before and the walls had sharp edges. The place wasn't really tidy before, but now it was a mess. There was only one creature powerful enough to destroy everything in a rare fit of rage and that was Suga himself.

"He's right here." Yuga said while he gestured to the pile of rubble.

"What? Don't tell me he'd been buried alive." Lucy really hoped he wasn't underneath the pile. Were they too late? But then why did Virgo warn her?

Wendy felt the sadness settling in her stomach. She knew she could resurrect someone if their body was still intact. But a demon was different. Perhaps they were already too late. She went to stand next to Yuga and put her palm on one of the rocks, trying to send a prayer for the soul which had been lost. But then she felt something resonating from inside. It was weak, but steady.

A vital force, not from underneath the pile, but from each rock at the same time. Wendy tried to concentrate and listen to the flicker of life.

"You can feel him. He is there and yet he chooses to stay silent. What do you think? What game is he playing?" Yuga asked without any traces of spite, just mild curiosity.

The Dragon Slayer listened intently. The vital force was small and steady as if the creature was sleeping. A sleep which was deeper than hibernation.

"...I think, ...he is in a coma." She mused.

The water demon crossed his arms with a frown on his pretty face. It wasn't often that demons were injured enough to fall into a coma. Suga was one of the elite. The first of the elemental demons and second in command. If Abaddon would ever be absent, then the earth demon was in charge of the whole Underworld.

There weren't many opponents who could challenge and win against him. One would be Abaddon, but it made no sense. He needed Suga alive, not half dead. Second would be himself, but he hadn't seen Suga for a few years, which was a short time for a demon. Besides that, he had no reason to harm him. The idiotic Thunder Demon was not old enough to go against their leader and having an elemental disadvantage made this even more unlikely.

There were only two options left. Dumah would be the first, yet he doubted Lord Abaddon wouldn't have noticed his arrival. The other option was the only explanation he had and it left a sour taste in his mouth. Looking away from the stones his frown deepened.

_'Suga, ...what have you done?'_

While the water demon and the Dragon Slayer seemed to be busy, Lucy took the time to look around. To her surprise there weren't many things in the cave. There was a fire place, which looked like it hadn't been used in a while and a few furs in a corner. She'd rather not think from which animals they might be. But they didn't look like the earth demon's last meal. More like a place to sleep on. It made the cave look like a primitive dwelling.

She stepped closer, curious if she had been right. When she was close enough, she noticed a slip of paper on the floor. The blonde knew that she shouldn't look. It was private and it shouldn't concern her. But she couldn't help herself. She picked it up and saw that it was an old picture of a young woman almost still a girl, probably the same age as Lucy herself. Seventeen, maybe eighteen.

The colors weren't really clear distinguishable anymore. Time had yellowed the picture, but from what she could tell, the woman was beautiful and had long fair hair, maybe blond or white like Mirajane's.

There wouldn't be anything odd if it wasn't for a certain detail. The earrings. She knew this pair quite well. She saw it everyday in the mirror.

"Yuga..." She called with wonder in her voice.

The demon turned his head to the left were she was still crouching on the ground.

"Yes, my Lady?"

Standing up she held the picture with trembling hands.

"...Why is there a picture of my mother in the Underworld?"

~o~o~o~

Tbc.


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I'm getting tired of this. Fairy Tail is a amazing Manga and Anime, sadly it does not belong to me. *sigh*

**Author's note:** I'm back! I had a poll to decide the fate of this fanfic. Since Fairy Tail's Mangaka thought it would be funny to throw a stone in my way. I was so moved by the result. Many people voted and all of them wanted for me to continue this fanfic. even if that meant it was a totally different story and not according to the mangaka's plot. Thank you so much. The continuation for this fanfic. is only possible because of you. Again: Thank you. _*bows humbly*_

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 6  
**by Misty Mina

Cries of exotic birds and insects were the only thing which could be heard in the humid air of Cocolua Island. Everything could've been so peaceful, if it wasn't for a small group of outsiders. The birds stilled their chatter and the animals stayed far away. They chose to rather observe these strangers than to stay in their path. But they fled in terror when one of them climbed up a tree for a better view.

"AAIII AAIII AAAHHHH IIIAAA AAAIII AAAAHHH"

...Or not. As it was, Natsu thought it was the perfect opportunity to use a liane to jump from one tree to the next with Happy besides him. Tarzan and Cheetah would be proud.

That was until he noticed, this was also some sort of transportation. Of course, he let go of the of the liane as soon as possible, which was in midair. The landing wasn't really soft, but Natsu didn't care as long as he had solid ground beneath him.

It didn't take long for his companions to catch up with the Dragon Slayer. Gray was the first to arrive with Juvia on his heels.

"Damn it Natsu, we have better things to do. Stop jumping the trees you stupid ape." Gray just had it with him. Natsu was still on the ground, not really able to listen to the ice mage's insults.

Yuu had led them through the portal and when they arrived in the jungle, Natsu just ran off without a word. It got Gray thinking. If there was a portal or portals in general, why didn't the water demon use it to travel directly to Magnolia? Why bother meeting them?

Damnit! Why should he look for reasons? Or try to understand him? Yuga was a 'demon', 'nuff said! A lazy, lying demon who was taking advantage of others. And Lucy was with him! Frowning at the thought, that burning feeling was rising up again.

Yuu fluttered through the air, avoiding lianes and other plants while she looked around. It really was Cocolua Island, but the thunder demon's aura was weak. Was he in trouble? She concentrated on her senses and tried to locate his position.

Juvia found their new environment interesting. She had never been in a place like this. Only in towns or in a forest. Looking around, the water mage spotted many creatures which she had only heard of. Then she felt a tap on her shoulder.

That's when her imagination ran wild. Gray would tip her shoulder and she would turn to look at him. He would say: 'Juvia I'm sorry. I've been such a fool. Why would I need anyone else but you?' And she would only stutter that it's ok and confess her undying love as well.

Sighing in dreamy bliss, she looked at her shoulder. Fully expecting to see Gray's hand. But what she saw was a green thing. Something like a lizard. What were these things called again? The 'lizard' cocked it's head to the side and changed it's color to match her blue hair. Chameleon! Yes, that was the word she'd been looking for. The water maiden had never been afraid of animals. It was not like they could hurt her. Well, ...no physical attack could harm her. But maybe, ...this harmless reptile was exactly what she needed. Her crush had this certain frown upon his face again. The one that spoke of anger mixed with hidden jealousy. She had to distract him!

Juvia cleared her throat

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA !" she screamed. Then she ran to Gray and held onto his unbuttoned shirt.

"Something is on Juvia's shoulder!" Juvia thought her sobbing sounded convincing enough.

The poor chameleon still held on and changed colors like a kaleidoscope. It was frightened enough to lose control over it's ability. Why was this big creature so scared of it?

The ice alchemist was thrown out of his trail of thought by the almost hysterical girl. At first he didn't see what she was talking about, but then he noticed the multicolored chameleon. Shaking his head, he lifted the small reptile of her shoulder. Grateful to be saved, it changed back into it's usual green color.

"Juvia, that's only a chameleon. Nothing to be afraid of." He put it on the ground while Juvia hid behind him. The chameleon had enough adventures for the day and crawled through the bushes back to where it had come from. Hopefully it would never encounter these strange creatures again.

The water maiden congratulated herself. Because Gray's mind was no longer occupied with a certain, blond Stellar Mage._ 'Mission accomplished!'_

Having regained his bearings, Natsu stood up from the ground. He didn't notice how Juvia was still clinging to Gray. Either that or he didn't care. Looking around he tried to see the exit out of this thick, tropical jungle.

Suddenly there was noise in the air. It sounded like constant rolling thunder. The group halted their movements to listen. Gray concluded it might be the demon they were looking for. But the thunder didn't stop and didn't get louder. What was going on?

"Yuu?" Gray whispered. "What's that?"

The small Not-Pixie couldn't really remember the exact words her Master had said. They were so, ...complicated. So she said what she believed was right.

"...Coconuts!"

Their eyes went wide. Was the little messenger serious? Natsu covered his mouth as not to laugh out loud. However, in the end he couldn't keep it in. Natsu was laughing like there was no tomorrow. Gray blinked twice , but still couldn't make sense of the word.

"Coconuts?" He repeated disbelieving.

Yuu nodded vigorously.

"Uh huh! Master Yuga say uhm...: 'Be careful of uh... naive coconuts! They're dangerous uhm,... cannonballs!'"

Natsu threw himself to the ground and laughed harder than before while pounding his fists on the ground. This was too much for him. Juvia managed to stifle the laugh, but couldn't suppress a smile. The little messenger was so adorable. The ice mage didn't get the joke. He was trying to figure out if Yuu had mixed things up or if the water demon had some screws loose.

Shaking his head he decided to figure it out later. Much later. He turned around to Juvia who was the only one attentive enough to listen to him. The pink freak was still laughing on the ground and ...just a sec.

"Where is Happy?" He asked.

Noticing the blue cat's absence just now, Juvia looked around. But didn't see anything. No blue fur and no flying cat. She felt a bit ashamed of herself. Her mind had been on her crush instead of the task at hand. Now their friend was missing and they didn't know where to look for him.

"GUYS!" That was Happy!

It didn't sound like the little cat was in danger. More like he was excited about something. The two were relieved that nothing had happened to him. Natsu on the other hand, had more faith in his partner. He knew Happy would be fine and if not, he would have let them know somehow.

"Hey, what's up Happy? Did you find something?"

The tomcat flew out of the jungle and quickly towards his friends. Landing on the Fire mage's head to rest, he pointed to the direction he'd come from.

"There is a party going on! They dance, have a fire and play on drums!"

Natsu liked the idea of having a party in the middle of this jungle.

"Great, we should drop in!"

Gray as usual didn't agree with the Firehead. So that rolling thunder they still heard were drums plus Happy said they had a fire and there were people. Which meant one thing! They were not alone.

"Juvia thinks we should take a look, maybe that thunder demon is among them."

A good idea really, but they had to be careful. Sneak up, take a look and if they were wrong, they could still leave. The plan would be good if it wasn't for a certain loudmouthed Dragon Slayer.

"Then let's go!" Natsu was really enthusiastic about this and Gray didn't like it.

"Not so fast Flame-brain!"

"What now, Ice pickle?" Well aren't we imaginative today?

Gray had to somehow discourage the other from crashing that 'party'. He had a good guess what was waiting for them.

"Listen! Our mission says 'Find that demon!' and not 'party through the night!' So we won't disturb these people any more than necessary. We sneak up and take a look! Can you follow me so far?"

"I'm not stupid. But why sneak up if we can just ask?"

Gray slapped his forehead. What did he do to deserve this? He should have requested, no 'demanded' to go with Lucy.

"Because, I just said we won't disturb them if we don't have to. Know your enemy first!"

In Natsu's opinion, that Streaker didn't make any sense.

"What enemy?"

"THAT WAY!" Yuu interrupted them before they could start arguing again. She pointed to the same direction as Happy had. Through their bickering, Yuu had pinpointed their target.

"Yuu certain! Sparky that way! But Sparky weak. Makes Yuu wonder if everything alright."

Now they had no other choice but to go that way. Natsu would at least try and sneak up. It could be fun and maybe he would finally understand what 'Stealth' meant. They made their way slowly through the thick bushes. The less noise they made, the better.

The drums got louder with each step they took and soon they smelled smoke and the scent of cooked food. The ice alchemist pointed to the ground and at his signal they all hunkered down. Moving a big leaf a bit to the side, Gray saw what this ruckus was all about.

Half-naked, brown-skinned people were dancing around a big fire. There were bones and skulls of many humans collected in different piles all over the place. Again he remembered Yuu's words and now after seeing all this, they made sense. Yuu had not really mixed them up, she had misheard them!

"Native Cocoluans! And they're Cannibals!" He repeated what Yuga might have told his messenger.

"Juvia's scared!" The water maiden had also heard of those vicious people. They ate other humans and believed their strength would go over to them. An unbearable thought that made her sick to her stomach.

The natives were crying now. Chanting one word over and over again. It sounded like they were demanding for something. Then all of a sudden, the drums went silent and the demands stopped. The crowd parted for a palanquin made of bamboo and carried by four of those Cocoluans. Inside was a person who had much lighter skin and blond hair. From the looks of it, Gray would say this was the main dish.

Juvia heard a small gasp and looked to the side where Yuu was floating in midair.

"What's the matter Yuu?"

The little messenger had her hands clasped over her mouth. She'd almost screamed at the scene.

"They wanna eat Sparky! But why Sparky not fighting? Yuu not understand."

Hearing that, the mages of Fairy Tail knew what to do. Natsu voiced their thoughts.

"Let's crash that party!"

This time Gray agreed on that thought. They both jumped out of the bushed. Juvia stayed behind with Yuu and Happy. As much as she wanted to help, these two needed protection as well. Besides that, she was sure her Gray-sama could handle a few powerless natives.

Natsu knew he didn't need to show off greatly here. These opponents were a joke! He ran over to the big fireplace and pushed a few people out of the way. The Fire was big and it looked delicious. So he did what he could do best and ate it. The natives gasped and some screamed when they saw it.

A few of them started to run now, but the warriors of the tribe stayed behind. Armed with bow and arrow they took aim at the fire mage. Thankfully Gray interfered and sent an ice blast their way. The Cocoluans had never seen ice, nor had they seen snow. They didn't even know what the word 'cold' meant. So when the blast merely graced their faces, even the bravest warriors surrendered and ran for their life.

Now that the tribe had left the scene and everything had calmed down, a new voice could be heard.

"Ey, watcha doin' crashin' mah ceremony?"

Yuu zipped through the air and halted in front of the palanquin.

"Bad Sparky! Lord Abaddon called, but Sparky no answer!" Yuu was clearly mad at him and started scolding him like a little kid.

"Aw man, if tha mosquito is 'ere, means tha snake isn' far. This's bound tha be trouble."

Gray and Natsu went over to the palanquin. Inside sat a boy who was around their age. He had blond spiky hair and steel blue eyes. It was slightly dark inside that wild-man-carriage, but they could clearly see that he was tied up with a few ropes.

"What ceremony?" Gray asked.

The boy got out of the palanquin, still bound in those ropes. Now that he was out in the open, the group got a good look at the supposed thunder demon. His features were just as human as Yuga's. He wore a white muscle shirt, white pants with sewed in, black knee protectors and fitting black and white boots. Black, fingerless gloves with metal bands for the knuckles completed the street-style.

Juvia and Happy left their hideout to approach them.

"Mah crownin' ceremony of course. Who tha heck are ya anyway? ...And ...'ey babe. On vacation 'ere too?" ...Was that actually an attempt at flirting and were those buck teeth? If Juvia had to compare him to an animal, she would say he looked a bit like a mouse. The accent was also something she had to get used to. It was hard to decipher what he was talking about, at least for her.

Natsu shot Gray a look that spoke of confusion. Well it wasn't like Droopy-Eyes would be smarter than him anyway and Natsu needed answers.

"It looked more like a feast and you were only invited to be their main dish."

"AYE!"

The blond didn't really know what they were talking about. For him this matter was clear as day. Perhaps the little messenger had messed up their minds.

"No way, dude. They were so gonna make meh tha main man 'ere. Meh bein' their god and all. Cool huh?"

Ok, the group got the impression that the guy in front of them had misunderstood the intentions of the Cocoluans. Perhaps it would be a good idea to confront him with the truth. Before he would get himself hurt by chance.

"Uhm, Juvia wonders, ...if they wanted to make you their god, then why the ropes?" Yes the water maiden thought this would be a good start.

"Ah, third style, dat's so correct girly. An' tha ropes are just fer safety, ya know?" If he could have, he would haven given thumbs up, even if the situation was anything but great. However the ropes made it impossible. Yuu had enough and landed on the blond's head.

"Sparky stupid! They want demon meat! Yuu must get Sparky home! Lord Abaddon needs all demons!" Sighing the little messenger shook her head.

"Stop callin' meh dat!"

Gray thought his greatest nightmare was coming true now. There was really someone who could rival Natsu's stupidity. He formed an ice dagger and cut the ropes. Though he had to wonder, if that demon was anything like Yuga, why hadn't he escaped by now? Perhaps he hadn't thought of it.

"So, if your name is not 'Sparky', what is it then?"

The demon didn't bother to shrug the little messenger off, he just let Yuu stay there. He rubbed the sore skin on his arms before pointing to himself.

"I'm Zanga, nice tha meetcha. Didn' know tha island was so popular fer tourists."

Natsu cocked his head to the side.

"Tourists?" He repeated. Did the guy really believe that?

Gray felt two urges, to either slap his forehead or to strip. Both didn't sound like a good idea right now. So he went with the formalities instead.

"No, we're not tourists. We're mages from Fairy Tail and your Lord gave us the mission to find you. I'm Gray. The flamehead here is Natsu, his partner Happy and this is Juvia." He pointed to each member and from what he'd heard, he didn't have to introduce Yuu. Zanga seemed to know her well.

Juvia felt like crying when the demon waved happily at her. Why were only the wrong boys looking her way? Why not her Gray-sama? Luckily the blond turned his attention back to Gray.

"Is nice an' all, but I ain' goin' back! Ya can text this to Abaddon! I'm on leave! By tha way, if tha little nuisance is 'ere, then where's snakeface? Normally he ain' let her out o' sight fer long."

Natsu had also a hard time understanding him. His partner looked at him with questioning eyes.

"You mean Yuga?" He asked.

"Hit an' sunk, so yah know tha bastard already uh?"

Gray couldn't have said it any better. Maybe that demon wasn't so bad after all. They both shared at least one mutual thought.

"He's in the Underworld, searching for your leader with Lucy, Wendy and Carla."

Zanga looked at him with wide eyes.

"Woah, wait a sec. Ya mean Big Boss is gone? Skippin' work an' so on? Dat's a first. Could take sum time before they get tha him, with Lord High an' Mighty's navigation skills." Zanga snickered at that. Apparently this was common knowledge in the Underworld.

Yuu didn't take too kindly to that. How dare he insult her Master in front of her? Puffing up her cheeks, her face went red with anger.

"So? Sparky not find own brain! With two hands and road map!" She stomped with one foot on his head repeatedly.

"Cut it out, black-beetle! Guys, I hope yah said bye to yar girlfriends, 'cause they won' come back to yah. Yuga's a shameless flirt and Lady-killer, just so yah know"

Juvia bit her lip. Did the idiot have to mention this? She had worked so hard to get Gray's mind off of the topic. But now, the thunder demon had ruined it with a single sentence. She could already see the dark cloud over his head when he heard that. What to do? What? She had to think of something quickly!

"Gray-sama, maybe we should go back. Juvia's sure the others are back already together with the earth demon!" Yes, calming him down would be a good move. Focus on the mission!

The ice alchemist took a deep breath. Yes, that was better. No use to get angry over nothing.

"Let's go back to the guild, with or without you Zanga, I don't care. We can't force you to go." Gray's voice had a mildly aggressive tone. Natsu caught on Gray's mood but couldn't let things be like this. Their orders were clear! To leave Zanga here meant to fail!

"Hey Gray. The mission says 'bring him back'." He reminded.

Throughout the whole conversation Yuu had taken a seat on the demon's head. It was not half as comfortable as she would have liked. Oh well, tough luck. The small Not-Pixie had a problem now. Gray might not care, but she did. She had to get the moron back to the guild. The question was: How? He wouldn't go willingly and it was not like a tiny thing like herself could use brute force. Now what would her master do if he had trouble with him? It took some time, but then she had a brilliant idea. Nodding to herself, Yuu took off and flew towards the group.

"Fine. Sparky not go, then Yuu must report back to Master Yuga. Tell him that 'Flashy Idiot' not coming home. Too bad." The pun was meant more for Zanga's ability than his looks. Hopefully he would bite.

"Yah do dat. ...No wait, rewin' an' repeat! Wha did he say?" Oh yes, he fell for it hook line and sinker

"Too bad?" Playing dumb would annoy him even more.

"No, not dat! What didcha blab before? 'bout 'flashy idiot'?" If the narrowed eyes were any indication, Zanga would blow up any second. So Yuu did the right thing and put oil into the sizzling fire.

"Master Yuga say 'I don't care how, but bring that flashy idiot back!'" That did it, Zanga's fists were clenched in anger.

"Damn dat reptile! Gonna punch him a new one! Wait 'til I get there..." The thunder demon muttered curses and insult while he stomped pass the group and into the jungle. Probably to the place where the portal stood. Gray was suspicious. This didn't sound like the water demon's choice of words. He waited until Zanga was out of earshot before he asked.

"Say Yuu..."

"Yes?" The messenger flew to his side.

"Yuga never said that, did he?"

"No." Yuu was so relaxed as if she was talking about the weather.

"So you made that up?"

The messenger grinned from ear to ear.

"Yep." Was it just him or was she proud of herself?

"Why?" A stupid question really, but he wanted to know what Yuu's motivation was.

"Because, Master Yuga really say: 'Whatever it takes, do it!'"

That made sense... She did things only to please Yuga. Suddenly Zanga came back, seemingly lost.

"I, ...can't find ah portal, ...an' I ...can't open one either. Wha' s goin' on? " The blond was shaken up.

Natsu cocked his head to the side.

"Huh? So you're weak? ...damn I wanted to fight one of you." He kicked a small pebble to the side. Happy patted him on the shoulder while he floated in midair.

"C'mon Natsu, you could still fight the other two, right?" The dragon slayer looked only slightly consoled. Hopefully the other demon was much more of a challenge.

It wasn't what either of them expected. Just what he needed, a powerless demon! Rubbing his chin Gray looked at Yuu. Maybe the small Not-Fairy had answers. Yuu flew to Zanga, she knew something had been wrong when the demon's aura was so weak. She flew around him in circles trying to find something unusual and spotted it on his right wrist.

There was a strange bracelet with a few gems and runes. The metal was green and reminded more of oxidized copper. It didn't glitter in the sunlight and Yuu felt a foreign energy source in it. She motioned for Zanga to lift up his arm so she could take a better look. She noticed a hole in the middle of the bracelet and it looked like it was made for a key to fit in.

"What is that?" Juvia had never seen jewelry like this. Neither had Gray, Happy or Natsu. The bracelet had a resemblance to antique jewelry of times where mankind lived in straw huts and had never heard of magic. Yuu made a serious face.

"Hmmm, ...Yuu don't know." The answer made everyone face fault. Perhaps the group should know better than expecting little Yuu to have all the answers in this world.

"Let me try. " Gray formed a key out of ice, but as soon as he tried to put it in the key hole it shattered. He formed another and it shattered as well. Whatever this bracelet was, it was messing with his magic. If he had a real lock pick set, he might've succeeded.

"Sorry, can't open it." He apologized.

Yuu clapped her tiny hands together.

"Master Yuga will know for sure!"

Zanga had enough of her little infatuation with the water demon. Why was everyone looking up to him anyway? Water was weak against thunder! Everyone knew that. So why was Yuga always the top dog?

"Stop bein' all ogle eyed over dat snake wouldcha? It ain' like he hung up tha moon or sumthin'" He shouted.

Yuu stared at Zanga. The mages only glared mildly at him. Was that really necessary? She was like a child who looked up to her parents. Of course she would always put her attachment figure over everyone else. Which just so happened to be the water demon.

"Not?" Yuu asked innocently. Yes, the next face fault just begged to happen. Just then something dawned on the little messenger.

"If Sparky not find portal, ...that means Yuu in command. ...Yuu will lead!"

"Righteous. So tiny terror, ...where's tha next portal? Show meh!"

"Hmph! Sparky not tell Yuu what to do! Yuu in command!" The little Not-Pixie certainly had an attitude towards the thunder demon. The Mages had to rely on Yuu anyway and Gray knew it would be better to stay out of their bickering.

"Are we going now or what?" The Dragon Slayer obviously didn't think the same.

Natsu had enough of their fight. Now really, even he and Gray got along when the situation called for it.

Zanga just had to give in. The little brat had the advantage here. And he still wanted to give Sir Lady-like a piece of his mind. So he was itching to leave his vacation spot.

"M' kay... fine. Wha's yar command?" There certainly was resignation in his voice.

Triumphant over her small victory, Yuu headed for the portal. She beckoned the demon to follow her.

"Sparky follow Yuu. Yuu will lead."

Zanga slapped his forehead. Honestly, how did Yuga deal with her?

While they walked back to the portal, Gray remembered something he had forgotten before. He'd wanted to ask Yuu, but it had slipped his mind when they encountered the tribe. Maybe Zanga would also be able to answer this question.

"Say Zanga, ...about these portals. Could a demon open one, lets say... wherever they want?"

"Uh, depen's. Sumtimes there're portals already. They're all over tha world. Usually we use 'em to jump between places. But going from U-Town to sum place on this world ain't easy."

"U-Town?" Zanga's slang was worse than anything Gray had ever heard.

"Underworld!" He explained.

This caught Natsu's interest as well. The Underworld had to be full with demons, if he could find a way to reach it, maybe there were opponents worth his time.

"Why's that?" The flame mage asked.

"Easy peasy man. Since dat Zeref event hundreds o' years ago, our Lord shut all 'ntrances to U-Town. So we wanna go 'ere, we open a portal! An' here's tha catch! No openin' a portal where ya've neva been. Once ya've been there, yah can return."

It took all of the ice mage's translation skills, but he thought he knew what Zanga meant. It would mean that Yuga had never been to Magnolia. So he had to open a portal close enough to the town. Which was still too far away to know where he was exactly. So the water demon really said the truth when he'd claimed he'd been lost. But with him, one never knew.

Juvia had watched her crush out of the corner of her eye. His mood had lightened slightly, but not enough it seemed. By now he would have lost his shirt. However only the first three buttons were open. It meant Gray had a lot on his mind. Whatever it was, Juvia had to make sure he would focus on something else before Lucy came back. Preferably on her.

~o~o~o~

Lucy waited on the other side of the caved in entrance. Yuga had asked her to wait outside while Wendy would try to wake the earth demon. Carla was staying with her in case things got too dangerous and she had to bring her charge to safety.

The blond's thoughts were a jumbled mess. She had thrown a fit after she'd discovered the picture. The water demon had managed to calm her down but couldn't answer her question. Suga seemed to be quite secretive about many things. Also according to Yuga's description, he wasn't much of a talkative person. No, ...demon.

"_'Steady as a rock, ...with about as much personality as one too.'_" He'd said.

_'Just like his element.'_ She thought.

The stellar mage had noticed that the demons were like their element. Yuga was a smooth talker, sometimes moody and possessed a certain insight. It was like water. Smooth as long as it was calm. Stormy, icy, warm, shallow, deep or refreshing depending on the environment or situation. Reaching parts where nothing else could reach.

Would that mean Suga was like earth? ...Then again, what was earth like? Lucy shook her head. She would find out soon enough. She felt a bit ashamed of herself for losing her composure like this. Her mother would surely be disappointed in her.

_"What is the meaning of this? Tell me! What has he to do with my mother? If he has anything to do with her death I swear, I'll..."_

_She waved the picture at the water demon._

_"Please Lucy calm yourself." Yuga tried to soothe her._

_"Yuga, I have every right to know! Now what's going on?"_

_"I have no idea what..." He didn't even get to finish the sentence._

_"LIAR! You know exactly..." Lucy had tears in her eyes. Thinking of her mother and all the years without her still made her sad._

_"I swear, I never knew..."_

_"Liar, liar, liar..." The blond was upset and started beating at Yuga's chest with her small fists. The demon took the abuse before he grasped her wrists to stop her. She would hurt herself if she kept this up._

_"My Lady, ...please look at me."_

_Lucy hadn't even noticed that she'd closed her eyes. Looking up into his dark, indigo eyes, she started to calm down. Blinking the tears away she took a deep breath._

_"I'm,...I'm sorry." She had acted irrationally._

_"No harm done. ...Please hear me out. I do not know anything, I assure you. Suga is, ...a very secretive character. The only way he expresses himself is not by words. It is by his deeds and they are hard to read. He is steady as a rock, ...with about as much personality as one too." Now that Lucy had calmed down, he let go of her wrists._

_"Then,... he will not answer my questions?"_

_"He will when he is ready to. The only thing I ask of you, ...is not to pressure him."_

Sighing she looked at the hole Virgo had created earlier. Then she looked once more at the picture of her mother. She'd kept it when she left. Her mother looked so different in this. Lucy had only known her as a mother, never as Layla.

_'Don't pressure him, ...easier said than done. But do I have a choice?'_ Lucy mused.

How long would it be until they were finished anyway? It felt like it had been hours since she'd been sent out. Perhaps this would take even longer and she should sit down.

...Or maybe not, since the ground started shaking. It was light at first, but it didn't take long until it grew into an earth quake. A white flash zipped out of the hole. Carla had Wendy in her grasp and hovered over the ground. Lucy did her best to remain standing, but in the end she fell down to her knees.

"Wendy, what happened?" Lucy yelled.

"He's awake!"

Ok, Lucy got grumpy as well when somebody shook her out of her sleep, but this was just overdoing it. The stellar mage looked to the entrance and the hole. The last member of their group was missing.

"Where's Yuga?"

Wendy pointed to the caved in entrance.

"Still inside! He's trying to calm Suga down."

The stellar mage crawled to the side. With much effort she managed to stand up while leaning on the wall. The tremors subsided, but didn't stop entirely. Lucy was glad because her legs started to feel numb. Suddenly she could hear Yuga's muffled voice through the blocked entrance.

_"Suga stop this! ...No!"_

She heard a crash from the other side. It sounded like stone on stone. Lucy bit her lip. If she was right, Yuga was being attacked by his fellow demon. Should she go in and help him? What if she was in the way? Then she heard his voice again.

_"I do not wish to fight you Suga! ...Do not dare to..."_

There was another crash but this time, a water blast blew through the entrance. It missed Lucy and crashed into the wall only to re-materialize into the water demon by impact. Yuga cried out in pain and fell to the ground.

"Yuga!" Lucy ran over to him.

Groaning , the black haired demon sat up when she reached his side.

"I forgot, ...my powers are limited here."

The stellar mage checked for injuries. Thankfully she couldn't really find any, not even a scratch. The only signs that Yuga had been fighting were his dirty clothes and his messed up hair.

Meanwhile Carla had landed on the ground. Wendy ran to his side and used her magic to search for inner wounds. Fortunately there were none.

"Limited? Why?" The white cat wanted to know.

"Territorial rules! This is Suga's home. So every other demon is being suppressed."

There was another crash from inside this time accompanied by an anguished howl. He stood up and walked over to the still blocked entrance. Earlier, the rocks had collapsed back into place as soon as the water demon had been thrown out. Perhaps Suga had something to do with it.

"Do you need help?" Lucy offered. If this rule worked only for demons, then they could help.

"No! This is between us and a Lady should never get hurt because of me. Perhaps it would be better for you to go to the center. I will summon Thalia to escort you."

Yuga formed a small orb of water and dropped it to the ground, were it flowed into the pattern of a seal.

"Thalia?" Lucy asked. She hadn't heard that name before.

"Oh not her! She was so mean to Yuu!" Wendy complained.

Hearing that Yuga narrowed his eyes. He knew that Thalia didn't like Yuu, but not that she was bullying her as well.

"Please Wendy, tell me what she did." He asked in a calm voice.

"She kicked her and called her names like 'retard'."

Yuga took this all in with an indifferent face. When the seal was complete he called for the mentioned Underworld messenger.

"Thalia!"

Lucy didn't like how calm Yuga's voice sounded. Not a second later, the blue skinned messenger stop atop the seal. She bowed in front of the water demon with all the respect his rank demanded.

"Thalia at your service, Ma-KYAAAAAA" Thalia screamed in pain when the water of the seal had latched onto her wings and froze them in the next second.

Yuga looked down on her with a cold glare and his right hand closed in a fist. The small messenger was on her knees. She held her shoulders and trembled in pain. Lucy gaped at the now angry demon. Truly like water. One minute, he was warm-hearted and concerned. In the next he was cold and unforgiving.

Thalia looked up and when she saw Wendy and Carla, her eyes went wide. She had seen those two at the guild in Magnolia. This could only mean that Master Yuga had been told what she had done to his personal messenger.

"Ma-Master Yuga, ...p-please ...I-I didn't mean t-to..." Thalia tried to apologize. Until now, she had always gotten away with bullying the other messenger. She should have known that he would find out eventually.

"I should kill you where you stand!" It was nothing more but a hiss.

There weren't many things which could stir the water demon's fury. But trying to hurt Yuu in any way, was definitely one of them.

"P-Please Master Yuga, For-Forgive me. I-I'll do anything." Thalia started to sob.

Lucy didn't like bullies. But killing Thalia wouldn't make it right either. She went over to Yuga and held onto his right hand.

"Yuga don't! Let her go, please."

Wendy had been shocked by the demon's anger. She pulled herself together and walked over to Thalia.

"She won't do it again. Right?" Wendy asked the messenger directly.

Thalia nodded her head. Never again, never!

Sighing, Yuga opened his fist under Lucy's warm hands. He had never refused the wish of a woman.

"Thalia, ...you better be eternally grateful! The very same humans you always look down upon, saved your life!" With that he melted the ice around her wings back into water.

Thalia fluttered with her wings to dry them.

"Thank you Master Yuga, Thank you, thank you, thank you..."

There was another loud crash behind the entrance. That was right, there was still someone he had to worry about.

"I have to deal with Suga before he slips into another coma. Thalia, escort our guests to the center! Stay with them until we arrive there!"

"Yes Master Yuga! ...Please follow me." Interesting how polite Thalia could be if given the motivation.

Wendy and Carla followed the small messenger. Lucy took a few steps, then turned around.

"Please, ...be careful." She said. Then the stellar mage turned around and caught up to the others, not even waiting for Yuga's reply.

"...When am I not?" He muttered.

The crashes got louder and more frequently as if someone was pounding his fists onto the ground. Yuga let out a heavy sigh, it was time to go back into the lion's den. As much as the educated demon hated physical fights, this one was necessary.

"Time to get serious."

~o~o~o~

tbc.


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I'm getting tired of this. Fairy Tail is a amazing Manga and Anime, sadly it does not belong to me. *sigh*

**Author's note:** Ok I'm back and I'm sorry but it took a while to write this. Because I had it finished already, decided I didn't like it like that and wrote it again. -_- Well not all of it but a huge part. Anyway I hope it's ok now. Full of mistakes perhaps. Well, ...Finders Keepers, neh?

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 7**  
by Misty Mina

The temple was old and dilapidated, but this didn't stop Levy from entering it. She had heard a lot from her friends about this place. Mainly from Lucy. She wanted to know what the past had left for the future. These symbols on the wall were old and hard to read, it would take some time to decipher them and search for the right information.

Luckily the natives of Galuna island not only welcomed them, they invited the group to stay in their village as well. Team Natsu must have made a great impact on them if they were so friendly with other Fairy Tail members. Levy wondered if one of those demons in the village, knew about Abaddon or the Underworld.

There wasn't much to do for Jet and Droy, but they kept her company. One would always be wary of their surroundings while the other would try to help the script mage if possible. But most of the time she was so engrossed in her translations that she didn't even notice them or when her stomach growled. Her friends had to literally drag her away from work. Something she was thankful for.

They'd been on this island for a few hours now and the symbols seemed to pile up instead of becoming less. Today, Levy was extremely frustrated with her progress. So far she'd only found out how Zeref had been defeated. It was informative, yet not what she'd been looking for. What was she missing?

While Levy was inside the temple, Droy went out to look after his best friend. Jet had been anxious the whole day long and he also knew why. The Master had promised to send someone as soon as he could. Preferably a stronger member of their guild. But so far, nobody had shown up.

"You think they'll come today?" Droy asked.

Jet's frown deepened. He didn't like to rely on help. Didn't like the fact they couldn't protect Levy together. But the times had changed. The storm of war lingered on the horizon, just waiting to start and sweep them off their feet. A war between Good and Evil with them in the middle. At those times, it was important to stick together, no matter what.

"I hope so..." Mainly, he hoped Erza would show up. As one of the few S-class mages they had, she'd be a great help.

The black haired mage nodded and went back inside. It was time for a break anyway. Levy would just get a headache if she kept this up. When he reached the chamber he took a look around and found her in the far left corner, crouching on the ground with piles of books, scattered paper and scrolls surrounding her. She was scribbling something on a piece of paper, not even noticing his presence.

But that was why he loved her, wasn't it? She was not only smart, she was beautiful and passionate about everything she did. The very same reason why Jet loved and cherished her as well. He was not jealous, not of his best friend. They had no reason to be. Levy made it clear that she was only their friend and both of them respected her decision.

"Levy, why don't you take a break? You've been working for four hours straight!"

Levy turned to him.

"Yes, the second sign means time and not space!" Oh yes, she was lost in her work, as always. Droy bet she hadn't even heard what he'd said exactly.

The plant mage sat down next to her and took out one of Levy's favorite fruits. A red apple. The blue haired girl could never resist them. He placed it right in front of her, waiting for her to notice and for her stomach to respond. As soon as she lifted her head and saw the apple, her stomach started growling.

With a sweatdrop, she took the apple and took a great bite out of it.

"Thnks Dry." Droy laughed at her antics.

"Don't speak with your mouth full, Levy. I can hardly understand you." She could be so adorably childish.

Levy hadn't noticed how time had passed. Really, she should take better care of herself! But these symbols were confusing her. From what she could gather so far, Zeref had hidden the shadow far away from the place where he'd been defeated. He'd used his living magic to breath life into the projection. A perfect copy of himself. Also there seemed to be a certain way to destroy it. But there were words she didn't understand. They sounded like a prophecy to her. Once more she looked over her notes while eating her apple.

_'The iris of the white eye shows the grave of the shadow in the dead land.'_

There were also symbols that resembled numbers, but she didn't know what they meant. They could be anything. A date, a formula, a code,... or maybe they had no meaning at all. She was a script mage, she could handle symbols, Hieroglyphs and words. Numbers were out of her league. But there were many kinds of script mages. Freed Justine for example. He used runes to unfold his magic.

If she was lucky Freed could handle numbers as well. If not, she had to look for a script mage who was a numerologist. Difficult nowadays. It took great mathematical skills to use this kind of magic.

While Levy was busy with her thoughts and her apple, Droy took the time to look around. Strange symbols on a wall, in one of the dark corners of the temple, caught his interest. He walked cautiously towards it, only to see that these symbols were pictures instead. Some of the figures stood out of the wall as if the artist was trying to breathe life into his work. There were people with and without horns on their head, a dragon-like creature and something that looked like a ...a horse maybe? Perhaps it was meant to be something else, but time had taken it's toll on this figure.

"Hey Levy, what is that?" She would know for sure.

Levy stood up and followed her friend's voice. She hadn't been paying attention when he'd wandered off minutes ago. Once she stood besides him she scrutinized the legacy of the artist. It took her a few minutes to read the symbols and make sense of the pictures.

"This, ...is a story." She answered in awe. How come she hadn't noticed that?

Droy gave her a look that begged her to be a story teller for now. The script mage stepped up to the first picture. Half of it showed the people with horns and the other the people without them.

"Once upon a time, the humans and the ..." Levy ran back towards her pile of books and picked one up, then returned. She went through the pages until she'd looked up the word she was looking for.

"...the 'fallen' lived together in peaceful coexistence. But then, ...the humans became hateful and jealous towards the fallen, because of their ...their abilities..."

Levy took a step to the right to the next part of the story. It showed how the humans attacked the horned people with spears and bows and arrows. The horned people were running away towards the horse figure and the first, who'd reached it, were in a kneeling position.

"...The fallen were hunted by the humans. They didn't have the courage, nor the will to fight off the attackers. So they prayed for the protection of their guardian..."

Droy was shocked to hear what human kind was capable of. It were stories like these which made him feel ashamed of being a human himself. Levy didn't feel any better. She walked to the next part. The dragon creature seemed to chase the humans. Some of the horned people looked a bit, ...confused. Other were bowing down to the creature. A black sun... or moon shone down upon the running humans.

"...But instead of their guardian, ...a different..." Once more she had to look up the word she'd stumbled over.

"...'Spirit' answered their prayers. A ...'fire-Lizard'. It chased and killed all the humans and made sure that none of them survived. A black day for mankind..." Natsu would surely be interested in this piece of information.

At first Levy thought this was the end of the story, but then she noticed that the last picture was hidden beneath leaves and spider webs.

Being a gentleman, Droy brushed the dirt away for her. The last part of the story showed two shapes in the middle of waves, water perhaps, with the figure of the horse in the middle separating them. Now Droy was sure it was a horse, even though it looked like it had been shaped from small pebbles. Unnatural. Asymmetric... Divine.

"...Even though the humans were not a threat anymore, ...their guardian did appear. The spirit stomped and split the land apart. Then carried off their land into the middle of the ocean right under the moon. And for the first time, ...their guardian spoke to them: 'Under the moon's protection, this island will be called ...Galuna. Be proud, ...for you are chosen to survive!'..."

Stunned into silence, the Fairy Tail members let the story sink in. So this was the story behind Galuna island's creation? Like every island it had been a part of the mainland. But this was how it had been split away a long time ago.

Levy went over her notes once more. The horned people were surely the natives of this island, yet 'fallen' seemed to be the wrong word. And what about the ...black day for mankind? She went back to the third picture. The 'sun' looked different than the rest of the story. Round, shiny, ... real.

Hypnotized by the black sun, the script mage's fingers traveled over it's smooth surface. Unintentionally, she pushed it into the wall and it disappeared with a foreboding click.

"LEVY!" Fearing for her life, Droy threw her to the ground. Maybe she'd activated a trap?

A rolling sound. Something was moving. Then it stopped and a glassy ringing could be heard. Just like singing crystal. When nothing happened they both sat up. The plant mage was beat red since he'd been so close to his crush. But Levy was more interested in the sound. It still rang through the air, but got fainter by the second. Looking around, she spotted something in the dragon's mouth. The script mage took it and the glassy melody stopped.

It was a big, black pearl. Or maybe a small, black crystal ball? Only as big as a baby's fist and light like a feather. The shiny surface told her, that she held the black sun in her hands. Black sun...? Levy picked up her book and skimmed hastily through the pages.

"There it is!" She declared.

Black sun or black day was a term which had been used by the one who'd left the hints for the shadow's position. One of the two survivors of the cult. This story had been crafted by him! Levy was sure he'd heard the story from the natives back then and used it to hide this pearl. But how much of the story was true? How much his own doing? She would have to ask the elder of the village. Maybe he knew about it.

Suddenly the pearl was taken out of her hand.

"I take this missy."

Levy turned around, but the voice and the person or rather persons, since there was a small group in the temple, were unfamiliar to her. But the symbol on their clothes, that dreadful, red eye-symbol and her unconscious friend on the floor told her who they were.

They were the enemy!

They were part of the group, who'd tortured people for decades and made Erza's childhood a living hell.

Zeref's followers.

~o~o~o~

After an uneventful trip back, Erza Scarlet stood in front of the gates of Magnolia with her luggage in tow. Thinking about it now, she hadn't even used half of what she'd packed for the mission. There were times when she'd ask herself why she always felt the need to take everything with her. Most People assumed she took all of her armors with her for the mission, but those people weren't mages.

Exquip mages didn't need to take anything with them on a journey. They could just store it away, until it was needed. No, the redhead always feared that she might not return. Not in the sense of dying. More like she'd never see Magnolia ever again. The thought terrified her to no end. She'd once been taken away from a place she'd called home. To go through this again would be her greatest fear. Forget all those times she would feel helpless and unprotected if she didn't wear some kind of armor. To leave her friends, ...her family. To be alone once more.

That was much worse!

When she walked back to Fairy Hills, she noticed that some of the citizens would give her strange looks and whisper behind her back. What? Was her hair messy? Did she have something in her face? Or maybe it was another 'Kick Me' sign placed on her back by a sneaky Happy? If so, she would kill the tomcat this time for sure.

Erza took a quick look at her reflection in a shop window, but couldn't find anything amiss with her appearance. Combed hair, shiny armor, clean clothes and no 'Kick Me' sign. So what was the matter? For the moment she pushed those thoughts aside and continued on her way.

Once she'd arrived, she saw that nobody was home. All the girls were out and the dormitory was empty. Not even Levy, who stayed most of the time in her room, was there to welcome her. Oh well, she would go to the guild later anyway to tell them about her accomplished mission. Unpacking her stuff, Erza discovered a certain piece of clothing. Something she took with her even if it was now useless and much too small for her. It was the dress she had when she'd joined Fairy Tail. If she was honest it was not even a dress. Erza picked it up. It looked more like an undergarment, something to wear beneath all clothes.

Maybe she had taken it as a small token of luck. After cleaning it, the material of the dress didn't even look so shabby anymore. Mirajane once said, that it was made out of the most finest silk she'd ever seen.

Back then, it had filled her empty heart with pride.

Perhaps the Exquip mage was a bit too sentimental. Yet it was only this dress she was sentimental about, nothing else. Sighing heavily, she put it away. It was time to let the past be and move forward into the future.

By the time she'd finished unpacking and had eaten a little snack, it was already afternoon. The redhead contemplated if she should still go to the guild. In the end, her heart won over her mind. She had missed her friends and wanted to see them as soon as possible. Decision made, she walked out the door.

A sunny day, an accomplished mission with a high reward and meeting her friends. It was perfect. At least it would be if it weren't for the citizens. Their strange behavior was nerve-racking. Finally the first citizen approached her. It was the blacksmith of the weapon shop where she'd always bought and repaired her armor.

"Hello Erza. Where have you been?"

"Just on a mission. Oh, don't make that face, Jack! I'm fine, see?" Erza pointed to herself. The man was always worried about her. Of course, she was a regular customer after all.

Jack was an elderly, burly man. He had a short, white beard, glasses and many scars on his arms.

"That's good to hear. ...Say Erza. ...Did something happen in the guild? Is Makarov alright?"

Now that puzzled her.

"...What do you mean?" How was she supposed to know? She just came back. But his words alone were alarming.

"Dunno how to put this. Yesterday, there was a stranger in your guild. Some of the townspeople say it was a woman, others claim it was a young man. Haven't seen them myself. Anyway, since then, Fairy Tail has become unusually quiet. No fighting, no laughter, no music. Nothing! ...Also the fishermen, who always pass by the guild in their boat, said that the blonde girl and that child have gone through some kind of portal with that person. ...Seems to be a powerful mage if you ask me."

Erza knew exactly who those girls were.

_'Lucy and Wendy.'_

The redhead didn't know what was going on, but she intended to find out.

"I'll look into this. Thank you, Jack." Erza had to restrain herself. Running to the guild now, would only unsettle the townsfolk. It would confirm their suspicions. That something was really wrong in Fairy Tail.

"No problem. Hope it's false alarm and we were worried for nothing. By the way, next week is a big sale in my shop. You're coming, ok?"

"Did I ever miss that?" Erza was trying hard to keep the conversation light.

"That's my favorite customer! Have a nice day, Erza."

"You too, Jack, Bye."

With that Erza walked away. She really hoped it was nothing. When she reached the doors to the guild, she noticed the change as well. A heavy atmosphere seemed to loom over the building. No sound came from inside, just like the blacksmith had said.

Opening the door she was greeted by only half of the guild members. The request board was full, not a single spot was left. They weren't on missions. So, ...where were they? Team Natsu and Team Shadow Gear weren't present. The Raijinshuu were gone too. Gajeel hadn't been around for a while either.

Besides that, the remaining members seemed to do some kind of research. There were books instead of mugs of beer on their tables. If Erza didn't know better, she'd say that this was the library and not the guild hall.

"Master?" She called out. Instead she received a hissed 'Shhhh' from three sides. A library indeed.

Instead of calling out again or reprimand the others, she walked up the stairs to the second floor. The Master's office was on this floor as well as the infirmary. At first she wanted to just storm into the room, but thought better of it. She knocked at the door and waited for an answer. When she heard a muffled 'Yes?' she cautiously opened the door.

"Master?" Erza stepped inside.

"Hmm? Ah Erza, good to see you're ok. Normally I would ask how your mission went, but... as you can see..." Thankfully Erza was one of the more observant members and noticed things much faster than others. Her expression told him that she knew something was off.

"About that, ...what's going on?"

"Better sit down Erza, it's a long story and better cancel any plans you have for this and next month."

It must be a big crisis if the Master requested of an S-class mage to be ready at all times for the next two months. Sighing heavily, she sat down in the only free chair in front of the desk.

_'Sorry Jack. Guess I'll have to miss the sale this time.'_

~o~o~o~

This was just 'great'. Not even on the island and things were going to hell already. Gajeel could do without this, thank you very much. Not only was the world going down the drain, he now had to play babysitter for Team Shadow Gear. What a stupid name for a group.

He could rant in his head all he wanted. The Iron mage couldn't change the fact that Team Shadow Gear was already in trouble. The ship he'd seen near the beach was a good hint that something was about to happen. It looked quite normal if it wasn't for Raven Tail's banner on the top of the main mast. So Ivan was on the move and much sooner than Gajeel expected.

Once he'd reached the island, he made sure to lay low. Moving as silently as possible, he made his way to the temple. Makarov had mentioned that the bookworm would do the translations. What he saw there froze the blood in his veins. Zeref's cult had already taken care of Team Shadow Gear. They'd knocked the guys unconscious while they questioned the struggling script mage. She didn't tell them anything, which earned her a few blows in return.

It made the Dragon Slayer a bit proud of her. She wasn't the strongest member in the guild. Not even in her own team. Yet she held her own and didn't cower in front of those bastards! No matter how harsh he'd treated her, Gajeel was watching her every move. It puzzled him how someone as small and fragile as her had survived for so long in this cold world. The Dragon Slayer had seen the darkness in this world and knew what lurked behind some corners. Through the years, he'd learnt how to deal with it the hard way. His experience told him that the small and the weak won't survive for long. Despite all that, she was still around. Bouncing around with her happy-go-lucky attitude like nothing was wrong in this messed up realm.

Speaking of messed up. This only brought him to another messed up fact. Something Ivan hadn't mentioned earlier. Obviously, Raven Tail had been hired by Zeref's follower's. Together with the assassin's guild 'Skull Order', they were a force to reckon with.

This was the ultimate test! If he interfered now and Ivan heard of it, it would blow his cover. If he didn't, he'd be a traitor to Fairy Tail. At the moment, the best course of actions would be to wait and see what they actually wanted. Since they were questioning the girl, it meant they had no idea how to proceed. This would buy him some time. Enough to think of a plan. His first priority was to think of a disguise. If they couldn't recognize him, then he may still be in Ivan's good graces even after he'd rescued those three.

Suddenly, one of those priests pointed to Levy and the only word Gajeel could hear was one he didn't like. Time was running out! He had to think of something quickly. Or the squirt would end up being a 'sacrifice'.

~o~o~o~

She was scared to death. Levy had taken the blows bravely, not telling them a single word of what they wanted to know. The cuts and bruises on her body didn't hurt as much as the rope she'd been tied up with. And now, they wanted to kill her. Their patience had run out and she would pay the price for her stubbornness. They wanted her as a sacrifice. For what exactly she didn't know. Why did it always have to be the blood of a virgin? More importantly, how would they know? Maybe the fact that she never had a real boyfriend was written on her forehead. Who knew?

Looking around, she noticed there were other people around. People who were not part of Zeref's cult. She didn't recognize the symbol, but they were from a guild. A dark guild perhaps? The script mage had no time to ponder over that matter. They hauled her up to her feet and dragged her to the beach. Jet and Droy were left behind, but bound, gagged and unconscious, they were no help at all. Still, Levy was glad the two of them were alive.

What should she do? She was bound, her captors had an eye on her and soon she would be on their ship and abducted to god knows where. The guard to her right pushed her forward when she stopped walking.

"Move it Fairy! Ivan hates to wait!"

The other guard slapped him over the head.

"Iziot! Don' say zhat out loud." Was that an accent or did the man lisp?

"What? Isn't like the chick lives long enough to tell anyo AARRGH" The man couldn't even finish the sentence. A bone crushing sound could be heard when he hit the ground several feet away.

"What zhe.." Levy ducked when she saw a shadow behind that man and not a second later he was sent flying as well.

Alarmed by the noise, the rest of the enemies tried to defend themselves. But whatever it was, was faster than them. One man ran up to Levy, sword drawn and ready to kill her. Levy knew if she made it back alive, Fairy Tail would be warned. This would set the enemy at a disadvantage.

The man didn't come very far. Something jumped out of the bushes and attacked him. The blue haired girl had to look away when she heard the sickening sound of tearing flesh. When she looked again the man was dead at her feet.

There stood a silver-colored creature in front of her, one she'd never seen before. It had claws, sharp fangs and horns on it's head. It had killed the man with those claws and now, it was looking at her. Raising the paw, it was ready to strike her as well. Closing her eyes, she prayed it would be over quickly.

_'I'm sorry. Jet, Droy, Lu-chan, ...Gajeel'_

But instead of feeling pain she felt like she could breath freely now. She opened her eyes and her ropes were gone. Lying on the ground and torn to shreds. The beast had freed her. Saved her from Zeref's mad followers. She looked up into the thing's face. Levy couldn't read an emotion in it, she just saw it's red eyes and the long, bent horns on each side. Like a mask.

A horned creature?!

A Fallen?

She'd thought the villagers on this island were the Fallen, but what if she'd been wrong? Suddenly the head priest ran towards them. He drew a green dagger, the only weapon he had. The oxidized metal gave the blade a green shine. Age had left it in poor shape and yet it was still deadly.

"Begone Demon!" The priests screeched.

The creature pushed Levy to the side and to safety, careful of it's claws. But this moment of distraction was all the mad man needed. He rammed the dagger into it's right side. The beast grunted in pain then buried it's claws deep into the priest's gut. The man gurgled up blood before he fell to the ground. The beast, demon, Fallen or whatever it was yanked out the knife, took a swift glance at the script mage and ran back into the jungle where it had come from.

Levy had never been surrounded by so much death. The stench of blood was heavy in the air and she had to breath through her mouth so she wouldn't get sick. The dagger lay innocently on the ground, next to the dead priest, it's green metal was coated in blood now. Levy noticed that a tiny piece of the tip was missing. Reluctantly, she bent down and took the weapon, disgusted at the warmth it still held from it's former owner's body heat. Or was it the blood from her savior?

Better she took it with her, something told her that it was important. This was not a normal weapon. Maybe Erza should take a look at it. The armor mage was an expert in her field.  
Levy tore a piece of cloth from the priest's cape and wrapped up the dagger. She took a last glance at the jungle.

_'Whatever you are, thank you. Please be safe.'_

Then she ran back to the temple where her comrades had been left behind.

When she reached them, Jet was already awake, struggling to get his ropes off. Droy was unconscious, but seeing the bump on his head, Levy could guess it would take a while.

"Levy! Thank god, you're ok." Jet had never thanked a god for anything. Now that Levy was back and safe, he thanked every listening deity.

Levy didn't say anything when she untied them and looked at Droy's wounds.

"Say how did you, ...Levy, you're bleeding!" The speed mage was at her side in an instant. Yet he could only see drops of blood on her shirt. No wounds whatsoever.

"...It's not mine." She mumbled absentmindedly and placed Droy's head carefully on the grassy ground.

"Levy..." He started, but was interrupted when he heard the leaves shaking to his right. Ready to defend his comrades he jumped up and took a fighting stance. He wouldn't be caught off guard again. They'd snuck up on him and used some kind of spell. He couldn't even warn his friends. Some guard he was.

Luckily he didn't have to fight. Besides, he wasn't even a match against this particular enemy.

"Shit! And here I thought you guys needed help." Said a certain Dragon Slayer.

Gajeel had finally found a way back to the temple. This jungle was thicker than Natsu's skull.

"What are 'you' doing here?" The speed mage sneered. On top of everything he, of all people, had to show up.

"Master sent me to baby-sit you guys. And when I saw that ship anchoring near the beach, I knew you're in trouble! Che, figures."

"We can take care of ourselves and don't need you!" Jet was seething by now.

Gajeel merely glanced at them. Mocking them with a single look.

"Yeah, I can see that."

"Why you..." Jet yanked at Gajeel's jacket and was ready to pummel the other to a bloody pulp, Dragon Slayer or not.

"ENOUGH!"

They looked stunned into the script mage's direction. Normally Levy didn't shout at other people. But this was all too much. After all that, they didn't need a fight between comrades.

"Both of you stop and help me with Droy. We need to get him to the village. He may need a doctor."

Jet bent down and lifted his friend. But Gajeel didn't move, instead he crossed his arms slowly in front of his chest.

"Move Gajeel!" He ordered. Yet the Dragon Slayer still didn't budge.

"What? I thought you could take care of yourselves, 'Team Shadow Gear'?!" Gajeel taunted them with a smirk on his face.

Jet almost launched at the Dragon Slayer, but Levy's hand on his arm held him back.

"We will Gajeel! We are a team and we work together like a team! Thanks for Nothing!" Levy couldn't bear looking at him, she was disappointed.

She was so sure Gajeel had wanted to be accepted. Be their comrade. Now she knew he was a selfish jerk and did things only for his own gain. That time he'd saved her from Laxus was to get others to trust him.

...And it had worked.

It hurt to admit that she'd been fooled by him.

"Any time Bookworm."

With that Team Shadow Gear slowly left the temple, not looking back once.

Gajeel sighed, he took a few steps back to the tree behind him and leaned up against it. Grunting in pain, he pressed his palm to his right side only to find it smeared with blood.

His own blood.

He thought he'd stopped the bleeding, but that idiot of a speed mage had to yank at his jacket, didn't he? Now it was bleeding again. A good thing his jacket had the right color to cover it up. They hadn't noticed a thing.

That shitty priest got him good.

Gajeel had used his magic and created an armor around his whole body. He knew a simple armor wouldn't have been enough, the survivors would have reported back to Ivan. The man wasn't stupid and he would've known who had spoiled his plan.

The Dragon Slayer had taken the villager's looks as example for his armor, giving it a demonic appearance. Then he'd rolled around in the dirt to prevent the metal from glinting in the sunlight. All in all, not a bad plan if it hadn't been for this cursed blade. Whatever it was, it had cut through his metal like it would through paper.

From the screams he had heard, the survivors were buying the act. And now he'd convinced the bookworm and her groupies as well. It wouldn't do her any good to know who'd saved her. One word of this incident to the wrong person and he could forget about getting into Raven Tail and crushing it from the inside.

As Makarov had said: _'An empire will never crumble from influences from the outside, but from weaknesses from the inside.'_

Damn this really hurt. Gajeel hoped the bleeding would stop before they went back to Fairy Tail. Or he would have a damn hard time explaining how he got the wound in the first place.

He didn't want to hurt Levy, not anymore than he already had before joining Fairy Tail. Unfortunately, this was necessary. He would apologize one day, but not as long as Raven Tail existed. So this guild had to fall. Quickly!

~o~o~o~

tbc.

Oh yay, _*sings*_ That's the way uh huh uh huh, I like it uh huh uh huh. ^^

Noticed anything? Yeah? No? Ok, I'll tell you. None of my created OC's is in this chapter! Only a side OC which will probably never show up again. XD  
I thought my OC's took too much of your attention! I mean apparently _*looks at readers*_ Yuga has some fans among you. That wasn't planned at all.

Yuga: _*smiles slightly*_ I do not mind, since I do live to entertain the female population of this world. ...In every way I can.

Grrr. ...I created a demon, ...literally! -.-


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I'm getting tired of this. Fairy Tail is a amazing Manga and Anime, sadly it does not belong to me. *sigh*

**Author's note:** I'm sorry for the long wait but some chapters were under revision. Just like this story. I had to change one or two things and rewrite a bit of the plot. So maybe in the end, you may have to read it again. But this story is still ongoing. Thank you so much for your unwavering loyalty and support. I'm so moved I could cry. ...but I won't on with the story! XD

~o~o~o~

**Chapter 8  
**by Misty Mina

Erza Scarlet sat in the chair in front of the Master's desk. The old man had left her alone for a few minutes to let the news sink in. She couldn't believe what she'd heard just now. Was it really true? It had to be. Makarov wouldn't joke about that.

They were back... Erza wanted to cry, scream and howl in anger and despair.

The tormentors of her past chose to rise again. What now? Hadn't they taken enough from her? Her home, her family, her name, her right eye and her memories. Those greedy, little bastards wanted to take her present and her future now. But she wouldn't let them!

Clenching her fists, she trembled with suppressed fury.

How dare they?

How dare they try to mess with her life again? Was this all just a coincidence? No! They were after something and she bet she was somehow involved as well. Not this time! Not with her! Back then, she was just a child. Now she could take on an army by herself. Erza had been thinking about this for a long time. Musing about the 'If', 'when' and 'how'. It seemed like the gods were giving her the opportunity for revenge and she'd be damned if she wouldn't take them up on their offer. If not for getting back at them, then to protect her friends.

The red-head couldn't stand the thought of losing her new family, her guild, to Zeref's followers as well. Shaking her head she tried to get the thought out of her mind. No, she would protect them all! She would be the wall between the enemy and her guild!

Let them come. Let them try. But Erza Scarlet, Fairy Tail's Titania, would slay them all down until only Zeref himself remained. And he would pay in the end for all the pain he'd put her, others and the whole world through.

And maybe, just maybe, she could also find traces of her own past during the journey. It would be a long and dangerous one, but she was hopeful. After all, echoes of the past will inevitably be carried into the future and it was up to her to find and listen to them.

~o~o~o~

The darkness around him swallowed all the light the candles produced. No light and no fire could compare to the fury he felt inside. How was this possible?

Defeated!

He'd been defeated!

As if sensing his mood, the candles flickered, trying to stay alive and shine again. But in truth, it was only the door which had opened to allow a guest in. His savior. Or maybe his slave? It did little to deter him from his train of thoughts, which consisted of pain and bloody revenge.

"Is everything to your liking?" The figure spoke humbly.

Snorting at the very idea, he walked to the next chair and sat down. A faint smell of smoke was in the air and a light sizzling could be heard.

"Are these my furniture?..." He gestured to the interior with a sweep of his hand.

"...or are you trying to entertain me?" Now really, they should know wood wouldn't do.

"I see, my apologies. I'll bring you some made of stone then."

He turned a dark scowl towards his 'minion'. Yes, that term was appropriate. 'Minion' had a certain ring to it.

Stone? No! Never! Too dirty and too poor. And most of all, too much like his own damnation.

"No! Make them out of silver, ...and gold." Metal of any kind would do, but while he was here, he could make himself comfortable, right? The minion cringed a bit at his request, yet the man still bowed and assured him they would be done in time.

A different question bothered him. Had been since he came back from his supposedly eternal sleep.

"Have you heard of, or seen the Black Death?" Oh yes, he was eager to know. He'd been waiting for such a long time. But the minion cringed again.

"I'm ...afraid not, Not ...YET..." With the last screamed word he'd dodged a fireball which had been aimed at his head.

"Then I suggest you go and find him! You want my help with this quack plan of yours..., then find the Black Death and bring him here!" Oh yes, he wanted him here. 'Needed' him here.

'Him'? Now that was a new information. Until now the servant had assumed the wrong thing. So it was a person he was looking for and not an illness or event.

"O-of course. But you see, ...we can't make any progress if we... don't get a bit, uhm,... little bit of assistance from your side."

In some weird kind of way, the minion's request made sense. Fine, why not?!

"Speak!"

Sighing in relief the minion relaxed a bit before addressing the problem.

"I guess you know our plan to bring the great Zeref back, yes?"

Nodding impatiently, he urged the other to continue.

"Now we've discovered another way, besides the Tower of Heaven. Zeref had taken precautions 400 years ago. He took his shadow and infused it with life, which was a perfect copy of himself. But it's just living darkness without substance. How do we give it a form? Do we have to build the tower again, ...or is there another way to bring Zeref's body back?"

Smiling devilishly, he beckoned the minion to come closer. Once he was close enough, he snatched the collar and dragged him down to eye level while he himself was still seated in the chair. The stench of burnt wood stung the minions nose and hurt his eyes.

"The tower was nonsense. All you need is a suitable sacrifice. Only the best for 'the great Zeref,' right? But... not anyone will do. A mage, for the magic... and a king for the body. Or in short, a mage with blue blood in their veins." After he practically hissed the words out, he let go of the minion's collar. That was all the help he would offer, for now at least. The poor man was glad to be out of the other's grasp and backed away quickly.

"And now go! Find the Black Death or I'll call off the deal. ...You don't want that, do you?"

Shaking his head the other backed out of the room and the resident of the room was left to his thoughts again.

~o~o~o~

The fight had been going on for just a few minutes, but Yuga knew already that he was at a disadvantage. Suga wasn't even in his demon form. He was all around him. In the stone which the cave was crafted out. The rocks flew like being kicked or thrown by an invisible foe.

He dodged as quickly as possible whenever a stone came his way or remained in his liquid form. The first time he'd gotten hit was by getting caught off guard.

Thou shall not use your power to attack.  
Thou shall not use a weapon against your kin.  
Thou shall respect the Sanctuary Creator's words.

He'd forgotten about the rules of one's sanctuary. Well it wasn't like he visited other territories daily. Only defend, healing and support magic were allowed. The water demon had thrown a blast at his leader and shortly before it connected, it came back at him. It meant that the power behind the rules had been enforced. That, and a large rock, which he'd noticed too late, had thrown him through the closed entrance. Those rules limited his own power and ensured Suga's safety, just like it would do for him in his own domain.

But if he could bend the rules a bit, then the power to enforce them wouldn't affect him. All he had to do was to lure Suga out of his hiding place in the walls. He doubted the earth demon would listen to reason at the moment, neither would he listen to taunts. He was usually deaf for words he deemed unnecessary.

Yuga dodged another rock and it connected with the wall near the entrance. There was a pause, just like before. Thinking quickly, he kept himself near the walls. A larger rock came flying at high speed. Too fast to dodge, so Yuga did his element justice and turned to water.

There!

There was that pause in the earth demon's attack pattern. Perhaps there was no real advantage to hiding in the walls. Whenever Suga would hit the wall with a stone, he would hit himself in the process. Not enough for him to be really hurt, just enough to feel pain. If Yuga kept at it long enough, then the other would have no choice but to take on a form to attack him.

Jumping from side to side, it didn't take long before a roar of unleashed anger could be heard. Yuga wished that the battle would be over already, but it only got worse. Even if his fellow demon wasn't thinking straight, he was still a force to reckon with.

The stones and little pebbles on the ground shifted and gathered in one place, putting together a creature with four legs and angry glowing, red eyes.

An asymmetrical horse made of stone big enough to almost touch the high ceiling.

Suga's chosen demon form looked rather harmless, but it wasn't something to be taken lightly. Yuga had seen how he'd stomped whole cities into the ground at Abaddon's request.

Perhaps now, that he had his leader's attention, the other would at least listen to necessary words. Words he would surely understand.

"I know what happened..." Before he could finish, the horse charged at him.

The water demon tapped into his power and summoned a water shield which circled around himself with the same force as a maelstrom. Suga connected with the shield, but the rotating water ground against the stone and repelled him. It seemed like it didn't matter to him, as if he hadn't felt any pain. He charged again, trying to force his way into the water sphere and fight his enemy.

Even with the water circling around him, Yuga knew it was just a matter of time. The earth demon had more strength and an advantage in his own sanctuary. Each hit took more of Yuga's strength and he couldn't fight back. He had to get Suga to listen to him! He just had to! It was hard to think of a way to stop the other demon while concentrating on his magic at the same time. Another hard blow against his shield made him stagger.

Normally, as leader, Suga would've thought of a better strategy. But he was really out of his mind. Like a bull bend on taking down everything around him with his horns. The water demon needed a few chosen words. Something that would take Suga off guard and maybe get him thinking. He may be mad at the moment, but he wasn't deaf.

Yuga had an idea. It might not work, but it was the only option he had. If this wouldn't work, then he had to lure the other demon away from his sanctuary. Preferably closer to his own domain where he could enforce his own rules.

The water demon went in for the metaphorically spoken kill.

"You lost her!" He yelled.

Surprisingly, it halted the earth demon in his tracks who was about to charge again. In truth, Yuga knew only half of the whole story. However, it didn't take a genius to figure out what might have happened in the past. Lucy's mother died a few years ago and Suga tried to commit suicide by rampaging and depleting his magic around the same time, but instead he failed and fell into a coma.

"You loved her...and you lost her." It was bitter to rub salt into Suga's wounds, but the only way to stop him.

The form started to tremble, then it fell apart only to gather again and form something new. This time it looked more human but still made of stones. Yuga wasn't surprised. After years in a coma and after lashing out at a fellow demon; Suga's power was bound to be low. He couldn't maintain his humanlike body. Or at least not a fully human form with all details. It was just a disguise after all.

Suga knelt at the ground. The great earth demon. The second in command. Lord Abaddon's right hand. Broken and defeated. Not by his comrade, but by the truth in his words.

Yuga finally dropped his shield after he'd made sure that his fellow demon wasn't a threat anymore. His steps were unsteady but he still walked over to him. He'd taken a great risk and came out victorious. But if the other had been in his right mind, he surely would have lost to him. Water could keep up with Earth, but never defeat it.

He wouldn't kneel besides him. Wouldn't offer his hand to help him up. Not because he wasn't a friend or disgusted at the broken form. No, he did it because it would only put more shame on the earth demon and be another blow to his already crumbling pride.

"_How?"_ Since this body lacked any facial features, it was a telepathic echo projected directly into Yuga's mind. It was nothing but a whisper and it sounded as broken as Suga looked.

"'How' what?" Yuga could guess what he meant, but sometimes, it was safer to act the part of the fool. Talking to someone was the first step to heal on the path of grief.

"_...How do you cope? ...You've lost someone too. ...Jeanny..."_ The first whole sentence in a long time.

Ouch. That hurt. Did Suga have to bring this up? Perhaps he had a right to. If anyone knew about losing a love, then it was Yuga. Not because he had countless women through the years. Yes, he had flirted with them, even had many affairs before he met her. But when he did meet her, he knew there was a difference between the meaningless flings and the burning love he'd felt for one woman only.

"I... have been saved. ...Yuu saved me. She gave me something to do when ...all I wanted was to give up." He would never stop mourning Jeanny's death, but he could do it while taking care of Yuu. The messenger didn't even know how much she took away from his pain just by being around. Before Yuu, he'd screamed Jeanny's name until he coughed up blood because his throat couldn't take the abuse anymore. Now it was a dull pain in the back of his mind and heart. Still there, but less painful.

Suga remembered that. He'd thought the water demon would search for his own graveyard when he left the Underworld. But when he returned, he wasn't alone. Suddenly, he had his own messenger. Little Yuu.

"_I don't know what to do anymore. I loved Layla! No! I still love her! I ...can't go on. ...Act like nothing happened. It just... hurts...I...I..."_ Suga was rambling by now.

This was the first time that Yuga had seen his leader so distressed. To the point where Suga couldn't stop talking and was almost hysterical. The earth demon was the Underworld's pillar of strength. Many looked up to him and relied on his judgement. But now this pillar was crumbling away.

"Suga..."

The earth demon looked up. Or at least the stone which was meant to be his head did.

"...Humans move on because their time in this world is limited. Ours, ...is not. So stop being a martyr and let others save you this time." It wasn't an order, more like a plea to listen to an old friend.

A deep rumble echoed through the cave and let it tremble for a second. The water demon looked up at the ceiling.

"Lord Abaddon awaits us." Maybe their god was in a better mood today. Of course, the earth demon's absence when Abaddon had called them all, was considered as disobedience. He just hoped the Lord wouldn't be too hard on his old friend.

Suga's body shifted, stone grinding against stone, only to take on the horse form again. This time in normal size and with luminescent, green eyes. It was easier to move around in this form since he didn't use as much energy to maintain it. Stomping once on the ground, the walls parted and the center of the Underworld came into view. Yuga envied that. The earth demon was the only one who could bend his sanctuary to the point to create a portal to the center. He snorted lightly in disdain.

" Braggart!" He accused with a short side glance at the other demon, but Suga had reverted back to his silent nature. Compared to the rambling and distressed form, this was much better. Rather a mute and sane leader, than a rambling mess.

Before they could step through the portal, Yuga held him back.

"You did let her go..." Lucy was a child when her mother had died. It meant Suga had let go of her and let her be with someone else.

A sad nod was the only answer he got. Humans and demons weren't meant to be together and Layla's happiness was all that had mattered to Suga back then. She chose Jude Heartfilia over him and he accepted it. It was agony to see them together, but he endured it.

"Then you should know, ... her daughter is here."

Suga turned his head sharply, almost knocking Yuga off his feet if the water demon hadn't seen it in time to liquefy his body again. This was something he didn't expect. He knew that Layla had a child, but that was all. How many years had gone by while he was asleep?

Centuries of working together with the earth demon had taught Yuga how to read his movements and decipher his trail of thoughts. It was a necessary ability when working with someone who had to be reminded of the existence of vocal communication.

"You, my friend, have been asleep for a few years. Long enough for her to grow up into a lovely young Lady. If you wonder, her name is Lucy. ...Suga, just a good advice. If you really want to honor your love, ...then protect what she left behind." Yuga knew he'd failed Jeanny, but like hell he would let his friend repeat his own mistake.

Could he do that? Suga didn't know. He was torn between the wish to die and the need to keep living. It was the first time he didn't feel strong or capable enough for a task. Another rumble, but this one was not the Lord's voice. There was a commotion going on right outside of the center. Were the lesser demons fighting again? He couldn't be bothered with that! This would have to wait for later. Much later. Preferably after his audience with their god and also after he'd received his punishment. No matter what he would decide on, Suga would accept it.

Pushing his worries aside, he stepped through the portal with Yuga right beside him and made his way towards the temple in the center. The place where their Lord resided and awaited them.

~o~o~o~

While Yuga fought against his leader, the rest of the group followed the small blue-skinned messenger to the center.

Wendy couldn't stop thinking about Thalia's behavior. She obviously wasn't someone to pick fights with each and everyone, so why did she resent her fellow Messenger so much? Little Yuu was like a child, naive and kind. So what could the small Not-Pixie have done that made the other hate her? Could it be that she was...

"Say Thalia..." Wendy started.

"Hmm?" She turned around and faced the mini Dragon Slayer.

"...could it be that you are, ...jealous of Yuu?" There she said it.

Lucy, who had caught up with the small girl, hadn't listened. Her thoughts were with her mother and the secrets she had kept from her. She only heard the word 'jealous'. Looking up she saw how Thalia's cheeks turned purple. This wasn't anger. ...This was a blush! Blue skin and red cheeks.

"Uhm, uh, ...I ...don't know what you're talking about!" She turned around and flew a bit faster than before.

Bullseye! Thalia couldn't be anymore obvious. Carla had noticed that as well and even though it wasn't really interesting for her, she still thought there was more to it than that. Jealousy was only the beginning. Lucy tried to follow the conversation.

"Who is jealous?" She asked.

"Thalia is jealous of Yuu!" Wendy answered truthfully.

"AM NOT!" Thalia snapped with burning cheeks. Lucy couldn't tell if it was out of anger or embarrassment.

This was Carla's cue to show her own claws.

"So? Then maybe it has something to do with Yuga?"

Gasping for breath the little Not-Pixie turned around, trying to hide her face. Putting two and two together, Lucy finally understood what this was all about. Thalia was indeed jealous of Yuu because she was around Yuga nonstop. Thinking about it now, ...Gray hadn't been better. He behaved the same way by calling Yuga names and if he could have, maybe he would have lashed out at him too. Did it mean he was jealous as well? Then again, ...he didn't behave much different around Natsu. It was hard to tell, if the ice mage was really jealous or just itching for a fight.

Thalia was in trouble. She didn't want to admit her feelings. They would just blab it out to Master Yuga again. She had used up her luck. One more slip-up and he might not be so generous this time.

"Let's go, we still have to reach the center." Yes trying to divert their attention was the only thing she could do.

But Wendy was determined! Things couldn't go on like this. Thalia would bully Yuu again and maybe this time there wouldn't be anyone to save her.

"Thalia, you can tell us, we won't tell Yuga. But please don't let your anger get the better of you." It was weak, but still an offer.

The blue-skinned Not-Pixie couldn't hear it anymore! They were also just concerned for Yuu's well-being! Yuu, always Yuu!

"What do you know? It's always about her! Yuu this! Yuu that! Oh isn't Yuu cute?! She just awoke and 'bang', she's Master Yuga's favorite while I have served here for centuries! He rarely needed a Messenger and now he has her around day and night. I tried to be there when he was broken! I heard his screams for this 'Jeanny' person! And it was me who informed Master Suga of his condition! It's not fair!" Thalia's rant spoke more of hurt than of real jealousy. To be constantly overlooked while she did her best. That really hurt.

Realizing she said too much, Thalia clapped a hand over her lips. Damn her and her lose mouth! Now Master Yuga would make Pixie-sticks out of her!

Stunned into silence the two humans and the Exceed could only stare at the Messenger. What was that?

"For- Forget what I said! Please! I beg you! If...if Master Yuga finds out, he will..." The little servant didn't even want to finish that sentence.

Wendy held up her hands to calm Thalia down.

"It's ok, I won't say anything. ...but who is 'Jeanny'?"

Sighing, she could as well tell them. Thalia was doomed one way or another. No way the would keep quiet about this. Why should they? The small girl had seen how she'd treated Yuu. This was the perfect opportunity to get rid of an annoying bully.

"I... I don't really know. Years ago, Master Yuga was on leave for a while as reward for his services. But when he returned, he was different. He had changed! He was much nicer and he, ...made the effort to create a human disguise for himself. Something he deemed unnecessary and a waste of power before. I ...found out it was because of a human girl named 'Jeanny'. ...Somehow that thought didn't sit well with Master Dumah and he went after Master Yuga. Later, Master Yuga was in pain and grieving and Master Dumah was gone. He kept screaming for this girl and one day, he left the Underworld again. I was afraid for his well being. That he might try to deplete his energy to the point of dying. Or that he might seal himself away forever. But when he returned, ...he had Yuu with him and never let her out of his sight."

Partly, Lucy understood what this was all about. Yuga, even though he was a demon, fell in love with a human girl, ...Jeanny. Then he lost her. Well humans can't live forever unlike demons. Later he must have found Yuu and brought her back. There was just one thing she was curious about.

"Say Thalia, who is this 'Master Dumah' you mentioned?"

Looking left and right as if making sure they were alone, Thalia flew closer towards her.

"Master Dumah is ...'was' the Fire Demon. The first leader of the elemental demons before Master Suga. But he went against Lord Abaddon's orders and became... a traitor." Thalia spoke in such a hushed voice that Lucy had trouble understanding her.

A few things made sense now. She was already asking herself why there was no fire demon present. Lucy had a theory to what happened. But it sounded a bit farfetched even to her. In short. Yuga had an affair with a human girl which this 'Dumah' didn't approve of. He interfered somehow and the girl probably died. This again didn't sit well with their God and Abaddon punished Dumah. So far so good.

Huffing Thalia turned around. There was still Master Yuga's request to fulfill before he would kill her for blabbing out his secrets. But Wendy wasn't pleased yet.

"What did you mean when you said Yuu 'just awoke'?"

Thalia had enough! Why were humans always so curious?

"What do mages learn in your realm? Don't you know what Underworld Messengers are?"

Both humans shook mutely their head.

Thalia sighed heavily. Great, more secrets to be spilled. Well if she had to die then she'd make it worthwhile.

"Not many remember their life before they become Messengers. ...I do. That's how I know. I was human, ...about seven years old. ...My parents and my older siblings rarely paid attention to me. ...One day, my parents went to town and stayed there for the weekend and ...my siblings sent me out of the house in the middle of the night. As a joke... they locked the door behind me. No matter how much I yelled and pounded against the door, nobody let me in. The night was cold and it started snowing. I was so tired and then ...I closed my eyes. When I woke up, ...I was here in this form. ...I probably froze to death."

Wendy couldn't help it and let a few tears fall. Thalia went through so much pain and was even overlooked in her new life. No wonder she became jealous and angry towards Yuu.

Lucy barely held herself back. It was heart-wrenching to know and see how cruel mankind could be. It meant that Underworld Messengers were nothing else, but the reincarnated souls of abused children. And it was a demon who picked one of these souls up and took them home. Perhaps the humans were the true demons in this world and not the ones they accused to be.

"So, after you know the full story, can we finally proceed to the center? I still have to bring you there before Master Yuga decides to make Messenger-on-a-stick out of me." Thalia was mentally exhausted and couldn't even bring up the energy to fear her oncoming second and final death anymore.

"I won't tell, I promise." Wendy had heard enough. Thalia didn't deserve anymore pain!

"Neither will I." If Wendy had the heart to forgive, so did Carla.

Thalia turned around. She couldn't believe what she heard. After all she had done? They still wanted to keep quiet about this?

"You...won't? But why?"

"Because everyone deserves a second chance and someone they can trust. What do you say Thalia? Let's start anew, ok?" Lucy offered her a chance at being friends with them. She couldn't shake hands with the small Messenger, so she held out her little finger. A sign to bury the grudge and a promise at the same time.

Thalia looked at Lucy for a long time, considering if she could actually trust this human. Never had anyone offered her something for free, not even friendship. Perhaps, this was a once in a lifetime chance. She tried but still needed both hands to hold onto the blond's little finger.

"...ok."

~o~o~o~

tbc.

So I hope this chapter revealed a bit of the background and what's going on between the OC's. I was hesitant to write the fighting scene between my fav. OC's. It's not about writing the fight, but that it might not be as interesting to you. So I tried to put enough background into it to make it interesting. XD

I hope everyone who first hated Thalia will see her in a new light. What I wanted to say is, that there is always a reason why people become angry or why they're being a bully towards others. And even if it looks pointless, it's never too late to become friends. I experienced this situation myself.

**Mina flashback:** Skip if you want to, but then you have to review. XP

There was a bully in my class who constantly called me 'Airbag' because of my weight and ...yes my great breasts. -.- Most of the time I ignored him and didn't listen. Then one day, during a school project, I found him sitting in a chair surrounded by concerned classmates. He was crying and wouldn't tell them why. One after another left and I saw my chance. Not to bully him in return, I'm not that mean. I sat down on a chair next to him and just watched him. Once he noticed my presence I asked him to take a walk with me around the school building and if he wanted to he could tell me what's wrong. If not, that was fine too, just a bit of fresh air is all I'm asking.

He agreed and it took a while, but eventually he told me what bothered him. He had a girlfriend and she suddenly dumped him. Later, he found out she was going out with his older brother and merely used him to get close to his brother. I asked him if he wanted my opinion on this and he said yes. I told him that the girl wasn't much worth to begin with. No use mourning over someone who treats people like that. And I was sure that even if his brother knew about this, he would see in time how awful she could be. It really didn't take long and the little witch dumped his brother too.

From that moment on, we understood each other and my once bully became my friend. And stayed my friend until we graduated. It's sad that I lost contact with him but I moved away. That's life. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. ...But then you win again. XD


End file.
